California's Mathematics, Engineering, and Science Achievement (MESA) program, based at the University of California at Berkeley, administers Minority Engineering Programs on 18 public and private college and university campuses. The programs have been successful in raising retention rates among underrepresented minority groups, and are being…

The ASPIRA Association, an organization serving Latino youth through leadership development, education, and advocacy, is sponsoring the Hispanic Community Mobilization for Dropout Prevention, a project focused on increasing parental and community involvement in promoting high school retention and academic achievement. (SK)

Three programs which focus on at-risk kindergarten students are described. These programs feature kindergarten retention, transition classes, and child development specialists, respectively. (IAH)

By providing immediate intensive interventions when learning problems occur, the Success for All program has improved the achievement of students at an innercity Baltimore elementary school. (TE)

A coordinated effort by all segments of society, led by the schools, can decrease the number of dropouts, increasing the chances that more young people will lead productive lives. Included is a list of sources of dropout prevention activities. (TE)

Recognizing the potential of combining interdisciplinary methods with block program scheduling to serve underachieving high schoolers, the East Manhattan Outreach Center's staff initiated such a program in 1993. Students were block-programmed, using four classes of 28 pupils each enrolled in six courses. The program stressed small-group activities…

Support services to prevent dropping out of at-risk students include family wraparound services, individual counseling and psychiatry, intensive in-patient treatment, and residential placements. An essential ingredient, interagency collaboration requires common understanding of purposes and goals, communication, and group process skills. (SK)

Looks at European education, training, and youth initiatives to meet the challenge of social and economic exclusion. Articles discuss unemployment, poor living conditions, and inadequate education and training; dropouts; maintaining skill levels; coordinated training programs; the role of schools; immigrant children; and youth policies. Lists the…

Describes the revitalization of Evarts High School in a poverty-stricken area of rural Kentucky. Reforms included (1) adding 120 electives to the curriculum; (2) beginning a school news service; (3) producing a weekly video program aired on cable television; and (4) offering privilege cards for attendance, achievement, and participation in…

One component of a Missouri school-community partnership is a cooperative effort to improve the work force in the community and keep young people in school. Requiring new employees to have high school diplomas and establishing general education development programs near work places have lowered the dropout rate from 25 percent to only 15 percent.…

Because families and communities often fail to meet adolescents' need to belong to a productive, functional organization, schools are increasingly fulfilling this role. Membership depends on social bonding, which has four elements: attachment, commitment, involvement, and belief. Principals can remove impediments to membership by fostering a sense…

A proposed intervention model for at-risk students with limited English proficiency and disabilities combines the characteristics of successful dropout prevention programs and the best practices of vocational special education and bilingual vocational training. The model includes elements of access, retention, and transition. (SK)

Experiences from dropout programs that serve at-risk students at a North Carolina school district identify planning and management considerations. Among these are that dropout rates and other measures of success must be standardized; and staff selection, duty assignments, and workloads are different for at-risk educators because of inordinate time…

Shortly after Amityville (New York) High School teachers introduced the learning style concept, their classes began to experiment with alternative groupings, varied instructional strategies, and individualized response activities. Student achievement gains were easily estimated, but gains in self-esteem are immeasurable. (MLH)

Discussion of student retention at community colleges identifies reasons for student failure and withdrawal, concluding that many students leave school for reasons such as emotional problems, poor motivation, and financial problems over which instructors have no control. Suggests too much emphasis on retaining ill-prepared students detracts from…