This brief examines strategies for leveraging State longitudinal data systems (SLDS) to promote college and career readiness (CCR) goals. The examples provided are based on current state efforts to use their state longitudinal data systems to achieve their CCR vision and goals. The following information outlines the basic purpose and elements of…

Miami-Dade County Public Schools (M-DCPS) has been at the forefront of integrating art therapy in schools since 1979, helping children with emotional/behavioral disabilities become more receptive to academic involvement while maximizing their social and emotional potential. This article describes the history, development, current configuration,…

Quality data can be a powerful tool for teachers, administrators and policymakers to use when trying to improve schools or individual programs. Data can show if a dropout prevention program is working; if students are entering postsecondary programs ready to learn; and how students are doing once they leave the P-20 educational system. This…

By now people are all too familiar with the disheartening numbers: approximately 7,000 students drop out each day, which means nearly one-third of high school students will not graduate with their peers. The statistics are even more staggering for minority and low-income students, especially in the nation's largest urban districts, where less than…

This document consists of a compilation of partnership activities and programs relating to dropout prevention. Emphasis is placed on activities occurring in Florida, although there are some national organizations and programs highlighted in the report. The report is intended to provide the reader with an awareness of the different ways…

This paper presents a list of resources on what states are doing on the topic of Black male dropouts. These resources are taken from the report abstracts or summaries. This paper is a response to a request asking for these resources. (Contains 5 footnotes.)

The transition into high school is a critical point in the educational pipeline, and ninth-grade can be characterized as one of its leakiest junctures. This policy brief examines how some states and districts are currently easing the transition into high school for students. It focuses on five key challenges that states, districts and schools…

This report examines national and regional dropout rate trends; factors associated with dropping out; efforts these factors; and federal efforts to reduce dropout rates. Information came from interviews with National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) officials; review of NCES data and reports by dropout prevention experts; site visits at…

Begun in 1965, the Redlands Christian Migrant Association (RCMA) has focused on the needs of migrant farmworkers and their children. RCMA considers the fields of education, health, and housing as the areas of greatest impact upon migrant children. In its major role as a catalyst, RCMA has worked with various individuals with common objectives of…

Project RETAIN (Retention in Education Technical Assistance and Information Network) is a Florida project that assists school districts through identification and dissemination of effective practices that keep students with mild disabilities in school. One part of the project was the development of a database of school district efforts in the area…

The Volusia County (Florida) Single Parents Program was developed to identify single parents who are potential dropouts because of a lack of financial support for day care and to provide them with approved day care services. The program also features (1) cooperation between teachers and school guidance counselors to identify and counsel pregnant…

As part of its dropout prevention efforts, the state of Florida offers currently enrolled high school students the opportunity to earn a General Educational Development (GED) certificate. This new graduation option for at-risk students makes frequent use of computer-assisted instruction, operates a counseling component, integrates vocational…

Outcomes of the Performance-Based Diploma (BPD) Program, a program implemented at a high school in the southeast United States, are described in this paper. The basic elements for success are people, program design, and product. Staff function on the belief that teachers exist to meet students' needs. The program includes the following components:…

The Florida Department of Education (FDE) is developing an educational blueprint for the 1990s with a strong commitment to vocational and adult education. Commitments are being made to implement career education concepts, extend job awareness experiences to the elementary grades, counsel students to ensure early career plans, enhance vocational…

The New Smyrna Beach Employability Skills Training Program in Florida offers emotionally and behaviorally disordered adolescents the opportunity to learn basic academic, social, employability, and business skills through participation in a school-based business that models an actual job site. Comparative data for suspensions, dropouts, and…