Students leave school for a variety of academic and social reasons that include teen pregnancy and parenting, poor attendance and absenteeism, school disciplinary action, missing credits, social–environmental factors, social-emotional difficulties, mental health issues, and bullying. Increasing the rates of school completion has long been a social priority, given the number of students leaving school each year, the staggeringly high individual and societal costs of school dropout, and the unequal distribution of completion rates. Dropout prevention efforts address this issue through early identification, additional social and academic support, transition assistance, and credit remediation.

With the high price of dropping out and the relatively few opportunities for nontraditional students, many states and districts are now engaged in dropout reengagement efforts, also known as dropout recovery, to maximize the ...