Students' engagement at school has emerged as a critical factor across hundreds of dropout prevention and recovery programs in the United States. By supporting and improving academic, behavioral, cognitive, and emotional engagement, we can mitigate the risk of dropping out. This article describes the history of school dropout, predictors of…

The purpose of this quantitative comparative study was to evaluate the Positive Alternative Credit Experience (PACE) Program using an objectives-oriented approach to a formative program evaluation. The PACE Program was a semester-long high school alternative education program designed to serve students at-risk for academic failure or dropping out…

"Exito" means "success" in Spanish, so it is a fitting name for a dropout prevention program. Set in a large neighborhood high school in a low-income, largely Latino section of Philadelphia, Exito supports ninth- and tenth-grade students who are at risk of dropping out of school by providing them with afterschool programming…

The Colorado Graduates Initiative demonstrates seven factors that must be present to build an effective statewide collaborative effort to increase high school graduation rates. These include: 1) Leadership to unite diverse stakeholders on specific, common goals and catalyze them into action; 2) A focus on data, particularly on actionable, early…

Concerned about the persistently high dropout rates from big-city secondary schools, education leaders are trying a new approach to increasing the graduation rate--multiple pathways to graduation. Multiple pathways initiatives are relatively new and far from proven. Even the most advanced examples face significant issues, i.e., the need to…

According to the Alliance for Excellent Education (AEE), nationally one-third of students, 1.3 million each year, fail to graduate. The AEE suggests that these low rates have for too long been "obscured... by inadequate accountability systems at state and federal levels." Montana's accountability system is a case in point. Dependent on…

Purpose: Many students do not benefit from mainstream education and are forced to leave it. Governments and non-government organisations concerned with the social injustice and problems that such rejection could cause offer these students second-chance education programmes. This paper aims to examine the effectiveness of such opportunities, using…

In Illinois school districts, a service-learning mentoring program is being used to increase student retention and achievement by providing student-led social support for high school freshmen, as well as opportunities for student development, civic engagement and academic success. The National Dropout Prevention center/Network (NDPC/N) recommends…

While politicians and other pundits may not agree on how to improve schools, there is agreement that many areas require attention from improving student achievement, to ensuring effective instruction. As school districts struggle with these and other complex issues, there is a growing demand for executive level leaders who have knowledge and…

Described is a 4-year model of a Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Program (GEAR UP) offered to 294 academically and economically disadvantaged students and their parents during in- and out-of-school time activities through partnerships forged with school personnel and community-based agencies. In an urban high school where…

The term service-learning is used frequently these days, but confusion remains as to what it is and why it matters. More importantly, are there any measurable benefits? This issue of "The Progress of Education Reform" looks at four research studies that explore the impact of service-learning on student achievement and civic engagement. A…

Talent Development Middle Grades Program (TDMG) is a whole school reform approach for large middle schools that face serious problems with student attendance, discipline, and academic achievement. The program includes both structural and curriculum reforms. The What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) identified 17 studies of TDMG that were published or…

This paper provides web sites of interest with specific information on dropouts/early warning indicator systems as well as recent conferences discussing early warning indicator systems. This paper is a response to a request asking for early warning indicator systems research for secondary schools. A bibliography is included.

The National Dropout Prevention Center (NDPC) at Clemson University has been at the forefront of identifying model dropout prevention programs and promoting the use of best practices to increase the graduation rates in schools since 1986. The structure for these varied interventions and solutions takes the form of effective strategies, model…

The Eco-Interactional Developmental model of school success provides an understanding of the synergetic role that neighborhoods, schools, families, and peers can play in increasing the proportion of students who successfully complete high school. This article reviews the challenges involved in graduating high school students, presents the EID…