It's called the America's promise alliance summit and cities around the country took part today. Experts shared strategies for keeping kids engaged then participants broke down into groups to talk about practical applications for local school districts. Speaking on his way back from the trip, Rockford Mayor Larry Morrissey told us fighting this problem will take a combined effort from school, political and justice leaders, dedicated to keep kids in the schools and out of jail.

"As go our schools, so goes the city of Rockford and the truth is, if we want to have a safe community and an economically prosperous community, we have to have strong schools," said Mayor Morrissey.

Morrissey also agrees with Superintendent Lavonne Sheffield's belief in data-driven analysis, to find the root causes of why kids aren't making it to graduation, and develop a response.