Written by Bob Wise, former governor of West Virginia and current president of the Alliance for Excellent Education, Raising the Grade describes the alarming cost of our long-time neglect of secondary education. At a time when technology and postsecondary education requirements are rising dramatically in the workforce, the literacy skills of adolescents are not keeping pace. With most federal dollars targeted to elementary schools and higher education, few resources are allocated to improve high schools, to address the achievement gap threatening nearly 6 million students at risk of dropping out in the United States. Raising the Grade is rooted in the stories of real Americans whose high school experiences failed to engage or adequately prepare them for work or college.