This report presents status and trend data in several areas relevant to Latino children in the United States. The Latino population under age 18 years is growing faster than that of any other racial and ethnic group, and the challenges confronting these children have implications for cities and states where they live. While Latino children are…

This paper examines the extent to which alternative education can meet the needs of disconnected youth who are at risk of economic and social hardship. It summarizes characteristics of disconnected youth, risk factors associated with disconnection, and characteristics of students in selected alternative education settings. The most common factors…

This document describes the National Pilot Sites Project for Recruitment and Retention, an effort to recruit, prepare, and retain highly qualified diverse educators and related services personnel for children and youth with disabilities by involving multiple stakeholder groups within selected states (Alabama, Colorado, Georgia, New Jersey, Oregon,…

This paper examines how policies on student behavior and attendance are used to push students into dropping out of school. Although in the public mind the proliferation of dropouts is associated with a drain on the economy, there is no real evidence to indicate either that there actually are large numbers of dropouts or that dropping out is…

This paper identifies issues to consider as educational policy makers make decisions about diploma options and graduation policies for students with disabilities, especially in the context of the increasing use of requirements that students pass specified tests to graduate. A table compares advantages and disadvantages of four diploma options: (1)…

This report examines the performance of the Worcester Public Schools, Massachusetts, highlighting the areas in which Worcester is succeeding and where it needs improvement. Indicators presented in the report were developed in collaboration with representatives of a wide variety of organizations, as well as public officials. The report provides…

The title of this year's annual report has particular meaning for all of the staff at the Philadelphia Youth Network. The phrase derives from Philadelphia Youth Network's (PYN's) new vision statement, developed as part of its recent strategic planning process, which reads: All of our city's young people take their rightful places as full and…

The purpose of this study is to discover and classify some of the problems that inner-city high school pupils who are classified as truants may be facing which may have a bearing on why they are motivated to absent themselves from school or the classroom. (Author)

Discusses the problem of student retention in higher education and warns that colleges that fail to develop effective programs of student retention will not be able to offset enrollment losses resulting from the dwindling college-bound pool. Experts agree that the total higher education community must work together. (JAC)

A survey of students in the community and technical colleges and four-year college of the University of Akron showed withdrawal often occurred because of job conflicts, financial problems, and need for a temporary break. Nonpersisters would have been encouraged by improved counseling and advising, financial aid, and instruction. Persisters would…

Maintains that dropping out of school is more usefully interpreted in social structural terms rather than as an individual psychological event. Reviews research findings to support the argument that schooling reproduces a class-based society by legitimating the social role of the dropout and allocating students to that devalued status. (Author/MJL)

Presents a model to help student personnel administrators develop cost effective approaches for improving student retention, based on the marketing process. The marketing model can be used to systematically respond to the needs of students, faculty, and the community. Outlines retention tactics at Prince Georges Community College. (JAC)

Analysis of a survey of freshman women at a land-grant university included 12 possible determinants of student satisfaction, intent to leave the college, and dropout. The labor model seems applicable to colleges and universities, but is not sufficient to explain the dropout process. (MSE)

A study to test the connection between "A" level grades and age at entry with degree performance at Oxford Polytechnic is reported. "A" level grades were found to be of little value in predicting degree performance. (MLW)