“American Graduate Day 2017” is a live broadcast and outreach event dedicated to engaging our country around the dropout crisis with special celebrity guests, relevant spokespeople and compelling stories from the students themselves. The broadcast will be hosted by Soledad O'Brien and once again be broadcast from the Tisch WNET Studios at Lincoln Center in New York City.
The primary theme will be mentorship — telling the story of community partners and how they provide support, advice, and intervention services to at-risk students, families, and schools. This year's "American Graduate Day" will emphasize the need for mentors beyond high school, and focus on how mentors can be helpful as students pursue a variety of post-secondary options, including traditional four year colleges, skills-based certifications, vocational training or the military. As in years past, the most important element of this day is the participation of community-based organizations (community partners) doing exceptional work to combat the dropout problem.
The theme of mentorship will be applied to a variety of pertinent topic strands related to addressing this crisis including:
- Early Education
- More and Better Learning
- Special Needs
- STEAM
- Dropout Prevention and Re-engagement
- Career Readiness and College Completion
The topic strands will thematically link stand-alone segments, which will feature a dynamic mix of long-form programming, live interviews and pre-taped features that tell the story of community partners and how they provide support, advice, and intervention services to at-risk students, families, and schools.
Additionally, celebrity guests involved in education advocacy will be featured throughout the broadcast encouraging viewers to help close the graduation gaps and become mentors and American Graduate Champions themselves.
Join The Conversation:
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Shari Walker: American Graduate Stories of Champions
"Shari Walker’s mentors helped her realize that education was her safe space. The 25-year-old former foster youth and graduate of California State University Northridge realized the importance of having guidance during high school
Jessie Castillo: American Graduate Stories of Champions
"As a teenager in the foster care system
American Graduate Champion: Darren Iocono
"PBS SoCal and the Boys and Girls Club of Los Angeles Harbor teamed up to train students
