High Schools as Social Wealth Builders

The social‑capital (loneliness) crisis is not just a public‑health problem but a civic one: high schools reach almost every young person and can teach habits of trust, sympathy, and public‑mindedness that markets and laws cannot. Policy should treat high schools as institutions that deliberately cultivate 'social wealth'—friendships, local loyalties, voluntary association skills—alongside academic skills. — Framing K–12 policy around rebuilding social capital shifts debates about school purpose, funding, and curriculum toward civic resilience and public order, with implications for education, public health, and local governance.