This document presents nine papers from a symposium on challenges currently facing U.S. high schools and their role in preparing students for high achievement in postsecondary education. The following papers are included: "What Ails High Schools? How Should They Be Reformed? Is There a Federal Role?" (Chester E. Finn); "Achievement: High Schools in America 2001" (Jan Somerville); "The Missing Middle: Aligning Education and the Knowledge Economy" (Anthony P. Carnavale, Donna M. Desrochers); "What Should Be the Federal Role in Supporting and Shaping Development of State Accountability Systems for Secondary School Achievement?" (John H. Bishop); "Reconceptualizing Extra Help for High School Students in a High Standards Era" (Robert Balfanz, James McPartland, Alta Shaw); "What Role Can Dual Enrollment Programs Play in Easing the Transition between High School and Postsecondary Education?" (Thomas R. Bailey, Katherine L. Hughes, Melinda Mechur Karp); "Beyond Empty Promises: Policies to Improve Transitions into College and Jobs" (James E. Rosenbaum); "Raising the Achievement of Low-Performing Students: What Can High Schools Do?" (Gene Bottoms); and "The Role of Career and Technical Education in the American High School: A Student-Centered Analysis" (Kenneth Gray). A list of 13 recommendations concludes the document, including better define the high school mission; create better links between the secondary and postsecondary worlds; and better define the role of assessment in high school. Twenty-one endnotes are included. (MN)