The number of students choosing to drop out of school before earning their high school diploma continues to rise at alarming numbers. These students cause educators to question what strategies can assist struggling learners with academic, behavioral, or health issues to increase their chances of completing high school. Many dropout prevention…

Alternative education can provide a pathway to success for students who require a nontraditional approach. Alternative education is neither general education nor special education; rather, it is a setting or program where instruction is provided outside of the traditional school setting, with modifications made to class size, school day and/or…

The initiative to implement multiple pathways to graduation aims to increase high school graduation rates. Where these opportunities may be present, there are specific actions district leaders can take to support the implementation of multiple pathways to graduation. Through correlational quantitative research, this study provided the opportunity…

Schools experienced a massive expansion of technology over the past few years. They put in place 1-to-1 computing programs, are now using a record number of digital learning tools, and improved the availability of home-internet access for students. It was essentially a "fast-forward" for the evolution of digital learning in schools. But…

This article provides an overview of a summer professional development (PD) for teachers working within an urban alternative educational school district. Engaging with a lab classroom with intensive coaching support, teacher participants observed and participated in 20 days of literacy instruction that centered culturally responsive-sustaining…

The goal of this toolkit is to shed light on the importance of authorizing nontraditional charter schools and how the challenges of authorizing nontraditional schools manifest in practice, as well as to provide action steps for authorizers and school leaders who are able and eager to lead the field on these complex issues. The toolkit contains the…

Conventional punitive detention- and suspension-based correctional approaches to student disruptive behavior are widely considered ineffective and counterproductive. Instead of offering opportunities for change and growth, they punish students they deem incorrigible by excluding them from instruction. While effective alternative approaches and…

Healthy adolescent spiritual development is being hindered both by U.S. culture, which demands conformity to unattainable standards, and by the failure of the Church to become relevant in the lives of young people. This article explores how the alternative religious community found at a Christian summer camp can lead to positive growth in the…

As charters and other autonomous schools grow to serve larger percentages of students both nationally and internationally, it is becoming increasingly important to understand how to best support and prepare leaders in this alternative setting. This study focuses on how charter school leaders perceived pre and in-service preparation and support.…

One of the greatest promises of the charter school movement has been the potential to create diverse school models to meet the varied needs of children, families, and communities. As policy makers and charter leaders have recognized the need to hold charters accountable for strong performance, however, there has been a move towards more…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of the HELPS Program on the reading fluency skills of secondary level students attending an alternative education program using single case design methodology. Participants in this study included one 8th grade student and two 9th grade students attending an alternative education program in…

Educational researchers have been exploring academic outcomes for at-risk students for many years but somehow have not been successful in closing the achievement gap that exists for at-risk students of color. Acknowledging that gap and developing programs and practices that can be implemented within a shared vision can ensure that all students can…

Between 1994 and 2014, New York City engaged in a historic overhaul of its publicly funded high schools. This included the opening of charter high schools (made possible by a 1999 state law) and the creation of new, smaller district high schools that would, in time, replace many of the city's large, traditional, comprehensive, and vocational high…

This paper, which highlights the importance culturally relevant caring (CRC) in ensuring equitable educational opportunities for Black male students in alternative schools, contributes to literature on the Black male "overage, under-credited" and GED student populations. Our analysis provides insight into the following research question:…

Even in this "Age of Data," independent progressive schools have shown a remarkable persistence in offering an alternative educational model. As Traditional Public Schools (TPS) become even more committed to a testing model of achievement, there are schools that continue to operate on identified progressive educational principles. This…