QUINCY, ILL. -- The high school dropout age in Illinois is currently 17, but that may change.
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This week, President Obama suggested raising the dropout age on a federal level to 18.
Watch the President's State of the Union address here.
Illinois Governor Pat Quinn likes the idea so much, he's expected to propose legislation raising the state age to 18 next week in his State of the State Address.
Illinois is currently one of 29 states in the country that allows students younger than 18 to drop out of school.
We asked Senator Dick Durbin his thoughts on the current dropout age being 17.
Senator Dick Durbin says, "That is a terrible decision. It's a decision which means that person is unlikely to get a good paying job and be frustrated for his or her life because of that bad decision. What the president is arguing for is fewer high school dropouts. I can approach this by raising that age to 18 or by other means."
Some in education don't think it's the federal government's business to change the dropout age.
John Meixner is the Regional Superintendent for Hancock and McDonough Counties.
He tells KHQA, he doesn't look at age as an issue.
He simply doesn't want a single student to drop out.
He says he wants educators to do all they can to keep all kids in school.
You can read more from the New York Times about the true cost of high school dropouts by clicking here.
You can find valuable information about preventing your child from dropping out of school by clicking here.
What are your thoughts on the high school dropout age?
Should it be raised to 18, should the federal government have any say in it or should it be a state issue?
Comment below or join our conversation on Facebook.
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