A study examined the variables affecting individuals' decisions to discontinue attendance in or complete their adult basic education (ABE) program. The study sample consisted of 2,323 students enrolled in an ABE program through an urban community college in the Midwest over a 2-year period. Data were derived from student records and program…

This study explores instructional and interpersonal factors policy issue is discussed in this digest. The school in school rather than dropping out. These students had failed, two or more times, that portion of Florida's State Student Assessment Test which was required for receipt of a high school diploma. Data for this study were collected in…

Student attrition is a major problem for American colleges and universities because an increasing number of enrollees fit the demographic and socioeconomic profile of "high-risk" students, who consist in general of minorities, the academically disadvantaged, the disabled, and those of low socioeconomic status. Declining enrollments leave…

The San Diego City Schools collected statistics about grades 9-12 students who withdrew from school during the 1979-80 school year. The study's purpose was to determine how many of these former students did not enroll in schools elsewhere and, therefore, should be considered school leavers. The following generalizations may be made from the…

Students who left school entirely during the 1984-85 school year, and others who withdrew from regular school and subsequently returned to the district's High School Diploma Program (HSDP), completed questionnaires providing information about their educational values, reasons for leaving school, perceptions of their academic abilities,…

This document reports on a national symposium that constituted the first phase of a research study designed to determine how to use intrinsic motivation and self-empowerment concepts to retain special needs learners who are potential dropouts in postsecondary vocational education programs. The first chapter (by Brown and Wotruba) contains the…

Components of a student retention program at Eastern Michigan University are examined; for each effort to improve retention, project objectives and design, results, and recommendations are presented. Retention initiatives, decided upon as a result of a campus-wide mobilization of effort, include: a student-focused orientation system, a fast track…

This is a study of the dropout rate during the 1998-99 academic year at Saskatchewan Institute of Applied Science and Technology (SIAST). A total of 1,025 of 7,174 students (14%) withdrew from their program of study before the end of the year. This report categorizes the reasons for leaving as follows: (1) exited by institute; (2) personal…

Investigates Mexican-American elementary-age children with older siblings who were either high school dropouts or persisters. Results indicate that siblings of dropouts had lower expectations of completing high school and had more absences than did siblings of persisters. Recommends that schools use absenteeism and expectancy in identifying…

This study documents visits to a follow-up counselor at Gavilan College (California) beginning in the fall of 2000. Students on dismissal are required to visit a counselor prior to enrolling to assist them in designing an achievable academic plan. The goals of the follow-up counseling include: (1) helping students raise their grade point averages…

Ohio's Learning, Earning, and Parenting Program (LEAP) provides all teen parents who receive welfare with a substantial financial incentive to attend school. This is the fifth and annual report from a large-scale evaluation of the program, based on a study of 4,151 teenagers who were randomly assigned to either a program group or a control group.…

A project developed and implemented a plan to retain those adult basic education students who are likely to be successful if they stay enrolled in the program but who are likely to drop out if program staff do not intervene. The plan involved use of an assessment instrument to identify these at-risk students, development of an individualized…

Recent literature demonstrates the need for closer examination of general track curriculum students' experiences in order to increase high school graduation rates. General track students' reactions to school policies and practices governing extracurricular activities and attendance are described in this report. A case study methodology involved…

The influence of academic, demographic, and social characteristics of college freshmen on sophomore enrollment status was investigated, along with reasons for attrition. A total of 139 freshmen at St. Edward's University in Texas were surveyed at the beginning and end of the freshman year, using the Survey of Entering Freshmen and the End of…

This document outlines the Milwaukee Public Schools' proposed plan of service for children at risk. The report's organization follows the format of the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction compliance form, which is included. Procedures are described for identifying children in grades 8-12 who have dropped out of school, who have been absent…