California’s mayors are passionately concerned about the education and wellbeing of children and youth in their communities, particularly those at-risk due to the cultural, social or economic disadvantages they face. They envision an education system that offers integrated, comprehensive supports to children and families – an education system that will engage communities to support every student in achieving academic and career success.

The CMRT works with mayors and school district superintendents in the following three arenas to provide a range of support to member cities, which have identified as their initial focus strategies that can help turn around the state’s escalating dropout rate:

• State Policy: The CMRT helps mayors to strengthen relationships with legislative leaders, build strategic partnerships, develop policy recommendations and advocate for legislation that can help improve outcomes for students, reverse the drop out rate, and strengthen schools and communities across the state.
• Local Action: The CMRT offers technical assistance and support to mayors, school superintendents, their respective staff, and community stakeholders to build political will and cross-sector engagement in planning local education agendas, and to develop and implement evidence-based approaches to improving outcomes in their cities.
• Mayors Roundtable Resource Network: The CMRT serves as a portal to information resources that can help members address critical issues into the future. It is building a library of research and policy analyses on best practices, a decision support tool and, in partnership with key contributors, generating data that demonstrate the staggering individual, social and economic costs of dropping out of school. It translates this information to help member cities frame local action, strategic investments, and policy strategies that can create long-term, sustainable benefits for children and communities.