Articles

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Preventing high school dropouts: What really works?
   July 19, 2012

Last year’s high school dropouts will cost North Carolina an estimated $4.4 billion in lost income, taxes and productivity over the students’ lifetimes, according to a recent Alliance for Excellent Education report.  Although most people understand that education level affects income, it may come as a surprise just how much of a difference a high school diploma can make for both an... Read more


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Research-Informed Dropout Prevention Programs Summary Table
   July 19, 2012

As part of United Way's Collective Impact Initatiave for Children & Youth, The Larry King Center of the Council for Children's Rights conducted a comprehensive review of dropout prevention programs. This summary table presents information about research-informed dropout interventions and practices being put into action across the country. Read more


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School Dropout Predictors Annotated Bibliography
   July 19, 2012

As part of United Way's Collective Impact Initatiave for Children & Youth, The Larry King Center of the Council for Children's Rights conducted a comprehensive literature review of factors that influence school dropout and graduation rates.  This annotated bibliography is one of three products from this research and presents more than 40 peer-reviewed journal articles that found... Read more


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Dropout Predictors Summary Table
   July 19, 2012

As part of United Way's Collective Impact Initatiave for Children & Youth, The Larry King Center of the Council for Children's Rights conducted a comprehensive literature review of factors that influence school dropout and graduation rates. This summary table is one of three products from this research and categorizes the dropout predictors by developmental timeframe (Conception to three... Read more


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Eastland Mall: To buy or not to buy?
   July 18, 2012

In response to news that the City of Charlotte is considering buying Eastland Mall in an effort to make the site attractive to an outside developer, PlanCharlotte.org sought opinions from civic and business leaders about the idea. Results: a split vote. Read more


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Why Andy and Mayberry live on in cultural memory
   July 11, 2012

Karen L. Cox
Many viewers of The Andy Griffith Show came to believe that Mayberry was modeled after Griffith’s own hometown of Mount Airy, N.C. But was it realistic in its presentation of a small Southern town like Mount Airy? One could argue both for and against the idea that the presentation was realism. Read more


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Business leaders’ confidence dips but still positive
   July 2, 2012

The third quarter 2012 Charlotte Business Confidence Index report shows Mecklenburg County business leaders’ optimism about economic prospects declined compared to their expectations for the second quarter. The overall index value, however, remains positive on business confidence overall for the third consecutive quarter.   Read more


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Seeing American history through its trees
   July 2, 2012
Ruth Ann Grissom
Tea has been synonymous with political protest ever since colonists dumped shiploads of the stuff into Boston Harbor in an act of rebellion. In historian Eric Rutkow’s recent book, American Canopy: Trees, Forests, and the Making of a Nation, he notes that trees were an important symbol of liberty in the years leading to the Revolutionary War. Read more


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Finding a lesson in city’s budget, streetcar impasse
   June 27, 2012
Mary Newsom
How did this happen? How did a Charlotte City Council – with all 11 members willing to vote for a small property tax hike to pay for an ambitious, five-year plan of neighborhood improvements – wind up killing that five-year plan? Read more


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Little-known fund conserves some treasured places
   June 26, 2012
Crystal Cockman
Whether you’re a hiker, hunter or history buff, be grateful for the federal Land and Water Conservation Fund. Because of its existence, special places have been preserved for public use all over the country. Read more