The need for alternative education programs that work is paramount in light of the nation's public education crisis. The problem is that alternative education programs fail to adequately address the issues that At-Risk students bring to, and face in, the alternative and/or the traditional classroom. This study utilized a qualitative and a quantitative approach to evaluate and delineate the fundamental needs of At-Risk students in the public alternative education sector. The purpose of the study was for alternative students, their immediate relatives, and other affected groups to personally express their needs as lived, experienced, and as viewed by them. Those expressions of needs would then create the basis from which public education, having been apprised of the needs, can begin to develop the means by which they can be met. The research utilized open-ended questions developed by the researcher and answered by five different groups most pertinent to the study. The results derived were then coded into common themes that accurately reported the needs expressed. Data-driven conclusions justified the need for a new and different approach to alternative education and subsequent further study. The findings of this study also led to the development of a theory by which alternative education can be guided. Eleven appendixes are included: (1) Non-participant Data Collection Observation of CSCN [Crossroads Second Chance North] Current Students; (2) Institutional Permission Letter; (3) Participant Consent Form; (4) Application for IRB [Institutional Review Board] Review and Certification of Compliance; (5) Questionnaire #1; (6) Questionnaire #2; (7) Questionnaire #3; (8) Questionnaire #4; (9) Questionnaire #5; (10) Confidential Log Sheet of Participants; and (11) Quantitative Data Collection Methods. (Contains 14 figures and 10 tables.)