Pierce County and its cities share some of the highest rates of education failure in the state and, not coincidentally, among the highest poverty rates:

• Of the five large counties in the immediate Puget Sound region (Thurston, Pierce, Kitsap, King, and Snohomish), Pierce County has, by far, the highest percentage of children in poverty. (1)

• The kindergartens in our targeted area have Free and Reduced Lunch (FRL) rates of higher than 60%, indicating extremely high levels of poverty. (2)

• Pierce County is home to six of the 16 Washington high schools where less than 60 percent of the students who start as freshmen make it to their senior year. (3)

• Every year, 1,930 Pierce County students drop-out of high school. (4) This causes an economic loss of $480 million to Pierce County in lost wages.  This figure does not count costs generated by related crime, health care, and welfare expenses. (5)

1. The Annie E. Casey Foundation Kids Count Data Center. 2008. Web. 19 Mar. 2010.http://datacenter.kidscount.org/Default.aspx.
2. Washington State Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction. May 2009. Web. 22 Mar. 2010. http://www.k12.wa.us/.
3. P-I Staff and News Services. “‘Dropout factory’ at Some State Schools. One in 10 in U.S. Qualifies, Some in Washington State.” Seattle P.I. [Seattle] Web. 29 Oct. 2007.http://www.seattlepi.com/local/337358_dropout30.html
4. Washington State Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction. 2010. Web. 22 Mar. 2010. http://www.k12.wa.us/.
5. United Way. Web. 22 Mar. 2010. http://www.liveunited.org/education/.