A national initiative to put 100,000 adult mentors and advocates to work at the nation’s 2,000 “dropout factories” could increase high school graduation rates, putting students on the road to success while saving the nation billions of dollars.

A similar initiative to vastly increase the number of companions and caregivers could help millions of elders continue to live independently.

The two cross-generational initiatives are the centerpiece of a new report that demonstrates the potential for “experienced Americans” to tackle major social challenges, through both volunteering and paid encore careers.

The report, “More to Give,” was commissioned by AARP as part of the launch of ServiceNation to highlight the role of experienced adults in the broader national and community service movement.

“We will embrace everything from encore careers to a neighbor helping a neighbor stay independent as she ages,” said Tom Nelson, chief operating officer of AARP, which has also launched a new initiative, Create the Good, to encourage social action among its 40 million members.

The report calls for specific measures to promote social action, not only among baby boomers, but among members of the “silent” and “greatest” generations as well, including:

• Silver scholarships of $1,000 and more that would be awarded in return for a significant number of hours of service. The scholarships could be transferred to children, grandchildren or needy individuals.
• Encore Fellowships that place outstanding Americans over the age of 50 into areas and organizations with critical needs, such as education, health care, government, nonprofits and faith-based institutions.
• Expansion of the Experience Corps model of high-impact service to other forms of service to young people, and to other major national challenges and community needs.

The report highlighted Experience Corps, like Encore.org a project of Civic Ventures, as a signature program for the expansion of national service, citing the program’s proven results for both members and students, compensation as a way to cement commitment, and provision of educational awards similar to Silver Scholarships (which, however, are not yet transferable).

In particular, the report calls for Experience Corps to play a key role in a proposed major initiative to stem the high school drop-out epidemic. This effort is already getting under way through a coalition of more than 100 youth-serving organizations and General Colin and Alma Powell’s America’s Promise Alliance. The Alliance is coordinating drop-out summits in all 50 states.

“Just think of the power of the Experience Corps model on steroids, applied to middle and high schools and not just elementary schools, and you could have a huge engine to keep millions of people from dropping out,” said John Bridgeland, CEO of Civic Enterprises, former director of the USA Freedom Corps and one of the coauthors of the report.

The report’s other coauthors are Robert D. Putnam, the author of Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community; and former U.S. Senator Harris Wofford, who helped launch the Peace Corps and serves on the board of directors of Civic Ventures.

“It’s more than high time to have a call to service to these large, longest-living generations,” Bridgeland said. “This call to service can come not just from the president, not just from Congress, but from businesses, schools and faith communities. This is not just about policy, but about changing a culture, which is more extensive than just changing laws.

“Federal investment, in tandem with the private sector and nonprofits, can really bring this to scale and respond to the appetite of tens of millions of experienced Americans who want to give back to their country in concrete ways.”