(WASHINGTON, D.C.) -- Creating ways to reduce the number of drop outs -- that's the idea behind legislation being offered by North Carolina Sen. Kay Hagan  The Secondary School Reform Act focuses on combating the country’s dropout crisis by promoting cooperation.

"This legislation actually targets the low performing, Title One eligible high schools that have graduation rate below 75 percent and then the feeder middle schools that go into those high schools," said Hagan.

Hagan added that the dropout rate across the country is a huge problem. "Every school day almost 7,000 American students become dropouts.  That translates into nearly one out of every four American high school students not graduating on time."

Hagan is a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee.