Global workers, local schooling: an examination of human capital investment in Virginia

Local employment opportunities are hypothesized to influence educational attainment decisions made by high students, measured by the dropout percentage and the post-secondary education percentage. Data from 1990, 1980 and 1970 are used to estimate these relationships in Virginia's 133 school districts. Secretary of Labor Robert Reich's framework, developed in the Work of Nations: Preparing Ourselves for 21st Century Capitalism, is adopted to incorporate changes in the global-labor market.