This report presents the fourth-year findings on the effectiveness of Ohio's Learning, Earning, and Parenting (LEAP) Program, a statewide welfare initiative that uses financial incentives and penalties to promote school attendance by pregnant and parenting teenagers on welfare. The report looks at LEAP's effects on school completion, employment,…

The School-to-Work Opportunities Act of 1994 is designed to provide all young people, including out-of-school and at-risk youth, with access to programs that integrate academic and occupational education. In many cases, however, these youth are reached only by dropout prevention efforts. Because dropouts, as well as young people who have obtained…

The Goodwill Literacy Initiative evaluated its services during the 1994-95 program year. This time frame was chosen because several program enhancements were implemented that reflect the literacy initiative's mission to combine adult basic education with work force development. Three developments were aimed at student retention: a formal…

Faced with alarming dropout rates, educators must find ways to encourage students at risk of dropping out to remain in school. This book describes a variety of prevention programs based on partnerships between universities and local elementary and secondary schools. Among the innovative approaches were combining education and social services in…

This evaluation of the 1989-90 BRIDGE Project, a dropout prevention program in Hartford (Connecticut), found that grade 9 students felt a heightened sense of control over their lives after one year in the program. BRIDGE is a multifaceted program that focuses on reducing the disengagement of at-risk students facing the critical transition from…

This book examines the thesis that teacher burnout and student dropout stem from the same source, a process of alienation causing students and teachers to "give up on school." The first chapter outlines the size of the problem and some of the specific conditions that contribute to it. The second chapter examines the context of cultural…

The three studies reported in this document are part of an ongoing attempt to understand how the world of illiteracy and literacy programs appears to those who have either refused to attend or decided to drop out of adult basic education (ABE). Situational or institutional barriers account for some of this non-attendance; they do not, however,…

This report presents Arizona dropout statistics for 4 academic years, 1994-98. For each year, dropout rates are reported for grades 7-12 and are based on a calendar year running from the first day of summer recess through the last day of school. Most of the report consists of data tables that provide enrollment and dropout information for…

The Junior High School Intensive Care and School Involvement Program (ICSIP) in Washington (District of Columbia) was designed to supplement the regular educational program in four junior high schools by providing academic support, delivering social services to at-risk students, improving the school climate, and mentoring potential dropouts.…

This paper discusses the evaluation of 4 of the 12 project sites that are participating in a U.S. Department of Education demonstration program to implement dropout prevention or reentry models that include vocational education as the key intervention strategy. The evaluation study includes the following: (1) identification of factors that affect…

This directory describes programs that have been successful in recognizing and meeting the special needs of migrant secondary youth. It identifies 12 key components of effective service to migrant students and describes 36 migrant programs in the United States that address these components. The Interstate Migrant Secondary Team, a group of 18…

First-year outcomes of the 1990-91 Project Achieve in 32 New York City public high schools are presented in this paper. The program aimed to reduce the dropout rate and improve at-risk student performance by expanding proven initiatives and support services for school-based decision-making committees. This report, the first of a two-part study,…

The National Household Education Survey (NHES) was conducted for the first time in 1991 as a way to collect data on the early childhood education experiences of young children and participation in adult education. Because the NHES methodology is relatively new, field tests were necessary. A large field test of approximately 15,000 households was…

A study assessed the underlying dynamics of attendance rates of secondary school special education students at risk for dropping out. Seventy-eight mildly disabled special education students enrolled in an urban work readiness program were interviewed to assess the effects of job and affective skill training on their attitudes toward school. Only…

This paper analyzes the value of student retention practices, or of flunking students, and presents viable options. Advocates of retention argue that it prevents future academic failure, ensures mastery of the basic skills necessary for success in higher grades, and motivates students. However, others argue that retention is associated with…