Dropping In

Richmond's public-school system has developed a new program aimed at reducing the dropout rate. That's a commendable step, made all the more commendable for being taken with no extra money in hard economic times.

The big question is whether it will work. We certainly hope so. But area residents should bear in mind the uphill climb the school system faces. Dropouts are, almost by definition, the most difficult kids to reach.

And even if the school system brings them back into the fold, there's no guarantee of academic success. Many dropouts probably are what Yvette Jackson of the National Urban Alliance terms "school-dependent learners" -- kids who don't get the instruction at home that more successful peers do, because their parents assume their work is done once they've had the baby. Conditions at home are not everything -- alternative schools such as KIPP academies have proved that -- but they do play a big role in student success.

It's also worth bearing in mind that there is still a sizable gap between the city's dropout rate, now hovering around 15 percent, and its four-year graduation rate of 69 percent. Physical presence in school is an absolutely necessary condition for learning -- but far from a sufficient one.