Researchers used a pretest-posttest comparison to evaluate the effectiveness of monetary rewards in Project ALIVE (Atlantans Learning in a Vocational Environment), a nine-week summer program that combined education, employment, and career training for economically disadvantaged youth in grades 8-12. The project was jointly offered by the Atlanta (Georgia) Public Schools and the city's Comprehensive Employment and Training Act (CETA) office. An experimental group of 254 students was paid for both work and academic instruction each week. A control group of 220 students was was also paid for work but received no academic instruction. Using the Georgia Criterion-Referenced Tests, the researchers tested both groups before and after the project on 12 curriculum objectives in communication skills, mathematics, and career development skills. Test scores were analyzed using t-tests and Hotelling's T-squared. Results for 235 experimental and 136 control students revealed significantly better performance by the experimental group in mathematics and most career development skills but no significant differences in communication skills. The authors concluded that these results indicate Project ALIVE's monetary rewards helped improve student learning. Two appendices list the 12 curriculum objectives and present results on four additional performance criteria. (Author/RW)