EUGENE, Ore. - Governor Kate Brown spoke to students at Churchill High School Tuesday morning, about her plans to improve Oregon's graduation rates. 

To improve the graduation rates statewide, Brown said schools need to focus on providing hands-on learning opportunities to students, so they can have the necessary skills, regardless of whether they are going to college or entering the workforce.

Brown said she will work closely with former Bethel Superintendent Colt Gill, who was recently appointed as the education innovation officer, to address the problem. She said they will make sure more technical training is offered across the state and provide additional support and resources to students and families who need it. 

Brown said it was also important to create an early warning system, to catch struggling students before they drop out. 

The governor said she hopes that by adding more practical applications in the classroom, the skilled and diverse workforce in Oregon will continue to grow. 

In response to President Trump's controversial stance on Deferred Action Against Childhood Arrivals or DACA, Brown said these opportunities should be extended to all students.

"I believe very strongly that our dreamers, the 11,000 dreamers we have in Oregon, ought to be able to stay in the land of their dreams," Brown said. "They are critically important to our economy, and I want to make sure that they can stay here and go to school here and find good jobs here and raise their family here."

Brown will visit Bend Senior High School on January 17, and North Medford High School on February 1, in preparation for her state of the state address on February 5.