A February 3 forum sponsored by the Fort Worth League of Neighborhood Associations will feature experts who will raise awareness about high school dropout issues and offer possible solutions.

The daylong event is titled "Stand Up for Education." Among other things, it will cover:

• the impact school design can have on dropout rates.

• the key drivers of the dropout issue and the impact of dropouts on the community.

• plans to solve the dropout dilemma, including Fort Worth ISD’s Project Prevail.

• ways that community/school partnerships help sustain healthier, more livable neighborhoods.

The forum is the last of four education-related events made possible by United Way of Tarrant County, the United Ways of Texas and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Previous events in the series were sponsored by the Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce, Women’s Policy Forum Educational Collaborative and the Tarrant Area Community of Churches, with several other organizations providing support as well.

People attending the forums are being encouraged to think of ways they can help increase the number of students who complete high school and pursue post-high school studies. Feedback from the events is being forwarded to the Fort Worth Chamber’s Stay-In-School Initiative.