In the intervening 2 years, the Texas Legislature funded a number of initiatives aimed at increasing the State's graduation rate, including the redirection of State compensatory education monies to better serve at-risk students, provision of a funding allotment for pregnancy- related services, and allocation of resources for additional elementary school counselors in 29 districts. While the dropout rate has declined steadily over the past few years, there are still disproportionate numbers of minority students and 9th-grade students who leave school. Proposed initiatives for further reducing the dropout rate involve extending of the school year, increasing minority faculty recruitment, conducting ongoing dropout evaluation studies, creating programs for expelled youths, expanding initiatives to identify best practices at every level, and increasing professional staff development. In the long term, the State plans to focus on programs for secondary immigrant students, family literacy projects, and enhanced school support services. 5 tables, 6 figures, 70 references, and 3 appendixes