Discusses high school dropout rate, the reasons students give for dropping out, and the economic value of the General Educational Development (GED) certificate. Describes efforts to prevent dropouts among at-risk students or to offer dropouts another chance to succeed in school such as the Champion Charter School in Brockton, Massachusetts. (PKP)

Describes how three Colorado school systems joined together and set up a dropout prevention commission that used a seven-step approach to work at reducing student dropout rates. (MD)

Describes one family's unsuccessful experience with a minority student in a foster home situation. Schools are not equipped to handle the special problems of certain students who make up a large percentage of the dropout population. (MD)

Describes a dropout prevention program used for eight years in Joliet Township, Illinois, high schools. (MD)

Discuss several research reports on dropout prevention. Focuses on Teachers College, Columbia University, study that identified several reasons for low student dropout in new Coalition of Essential Schools Project (CCSP) schools in New York City, Includes selected references on dropouts and dropout prevention. (PKP)

A new calculation and reporting method designed to improve accuracy in arriving at dropout figures was tested last year by 288 school systems. The study, called the Dropout Statistics Field Test, is sponsored by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). (MLF)

While others form committees, do research, and write legislation to address the appalling Hispanic dropout problem, Joe Sandoval, principal of Denver's North High School, performs search-and-rescue missions to reclaim missing students. Recognizing economic realities, he and his staff visit students' homes with offers of academic help, flexible…

Dayton (Ohio) Public Schools have two new programs for potential dropouts, called University Prep Program and New Options for Work, that take the students out of classes with younger students and treat them as the young adults they are. (MLF)

It's up to school board members to communicate they want schools to improve academic scores and standards while increasing their holding power. Outlines ways superintendents can act to reinforce such policy. (MD)

The Young Adult Education Program in Arlington Heights (Illinois) offers high school credit classes in the evening to serve at-risk students who have left the regular day school. Students earn a diploma from the high school in their attendance area. On a bare-bones budget, the program graduates approximately 65 percent of its enrolled students.…

About 500,000 youngsters drop out of school each year. Reasons children drop out involve a combination of school and personal problems. Dropouts typically believe they have little control over their lives. Sidebars discuss ways of counting dropouts, suggest what schools should do, and provide selected references. (MLF)

Project Intervention is an innovative dropout prevention program developed by the Corpus Christi Schools (TX) to improve school attendance, decrease disruptive behavior, and improve academic achievement. Includes a discussion of dropout data analysis and a sidebar outlining the importance of citing the economic stakes when promoting the…

Four years ago, to address disengaged students in Franklin, Tennessee, Williamson County School District turned to an alternative program called the middle-college high school. This concept allows high school students to complete their coursework on a college campus. More than 30 middle-college high schools serve disengaged students nationwide.…

Welfare-to-work programs are bringing more adults back to school. These programs are aimed at those who are 16 years or older without a high school diploma or its equivalent. However, many adult students leave school for a variety of reasons, including pregnancy, lack of interest, and transportation problems. Lists benchmarks for good adult…

Schools are experimenting with community service programs. Among these are service-based intervention programs for at-risk children and K-12 curricula of community service. Cites examples, the characteristics of effective programs, and proposed federal legislation. (MLF)