The number of students choosing to drop out of school before earning their high school diploma continues to rise at alarming numbers. These students cause educators to question what strategies can assist struggling learners with academic, behavioral, or health issues to increase their chances of completing high school. Many dropout prevention…

Alternative schools are vital spaces for students who are not successful in traditional schools. The knowledge of social and emotional learning (SEL) and the impact it has on students who attend alternative schools specifically is limited. The problem addressed by this study was the lack of success that explicit SEL programs have in meeting the…

Educators develop and implement various academic/behavioral intervention programs designed to specifically address academic shortcomings or aimed at disrupting behavioral cycles that impede success in the classroom. The purpose of this research was to identify gaps in behavioral Response to Intervention (RtI) programs and to design a RtI program…

Each year approximately 1.3 million students dropout of high school and an estimated 40% of minority students do not graduate on time (Roybal, Thornton, & Usinger, 2014). In high school, 22% of students repeat 9th-grade classes because students fail to make a smooth transition. This gives the 9th-grade the highest enrollment rate and the…

More students are deciding to dropout of school prior to graduation. As a result the dropout rate has become a hot topic in education across the United States. The average high school dropout salary is approximately 50% less than the salary of a high school graduate. The social factors are another reason the dropout rate needs to be a high…

Alternative education students face many interacting challenges that put them at significant risk of dropping out of school (Carver & Lewis, 2010), as well as deleterious health and psychological outcomes, and intergenerational cycles of sociopolitical disadvantage (Laird, Kienzel, Debell & Chapman, 2007). Despite the persistent national…

In an effort to address dropout, the Louisiana state legislature mandated an initiative in 2009 which required all school districts to offer an alternative vocational high school diploma. Because this alternative diploma, known as the Career Diploma, is being implemented in all high schools throughout Louisiana, this research was designed to…

Governor Mike Rounds had a vision that more students needed to graduate from high school and not drop out. To accomplish his vision, in 2007, he signed into law Senate Bill 199, that became Codified Law 13-27-1. The law states that students need to remain in school until the age of 18 instead of the age of 16. This seemingly minor change greatly…

Hispanic high school students have a dropout rate that ranges from 35 percent to 55 percent depending on what type of report you may be referencing. Add rates for all high school students. Hispanic youth endure the challenges of language barriers, single parent households, working to help their family, or fighting off gang involvement in their…

The purpose of this historical case study was to gain an understanding of dropout recovery programs from an interpretive historical perspective. Dropout Recovery is an Oklahoma Department of Career and Technology Education initiative that provides high school dropouts an opportunity to re-enroll in school, gain academic credit, and participate in…

Schools in the United States have struggled with graduation rates for nearly 140 years. School divisions are continuously searching for new and creative curriculums to address changing student needs. From the U.S. Department of Education to local school board members, educators are working to discover creative and accountable alternatives to…

The purpose of this quantitative comparative study was to evaluate the Positive Alternative Credit Experience (PACE) Program using an objectives-oriented approach to a formative program evaluation. The PACE Program was a semester-long high school alternative education program designed to serve students at-risk for academic failure or dropping out…

Comprehensive high schools have been unable to meet the needs of all students (Cotton, 2004). Students face challenges, and some have been labeled "at risk" for various reasons. These students constitute a unique group who often require more time, energy, and resources than large, comprehensive schools can offer. Consequently, they fall behind on…