Additional Program Information

Developer and contact

High School Redirection is no longer an active program and no current developer or contact information is available. Additional information about the program model and the implementation experience of districts that have used it can be found in the Baker and Weinbaum (1991) and Rubenstein (1995) reports listed in the "References" section of this report.

Scope of use

The original High School Redirection opened in 1968 as an alternative high school and was operated by the New York City public school system until it closed in 2004. In 1987, the U. S. Department of Labor launched the Alternative Schools Demonstration Program (ASDP), which replicated the High School Redirection model in seven urban school districts in six states. Because of budget pressures, shifting district priorities, and other factors, these ASDP evaluation schools have all since closed or are no longer following the High School Redirection model. Although these programs have ended, High School Redirection's core features—small size, access to child care, and emphasis on academic remediation and accelerated credit accumulation—are shared with many alternative high school programs currently operating throughout the country.

Description of intervention

High School Redirection is an alternative high school model for youth who are at high risk of not completing school. The program emphasizes basic skill development and offers an intensive remedial reading program, Strategies and Techniques for Advancement in Reading (STAR), for students with serious literacy problems. In many cases, the schools offer opportunities for independent study and accelerated credit accumulation, so that students who have fallen behind can make quick progress toward graduation. Beyond the emphasis on basic reading skills, the program model does not require specific curriculum elements; the schools generally follow the standard curriculum offered by their school district. To help create a sense of community, schools are relatively small—typically with no more than 500 students. Teachers are encouraged to act as mentors as well as instructors and classes are kept small to allow for more individualized attention. The program model calls for on-site child care and limited extracurricular activities. The schools issue standard high school diplomas, operate in low-income areas separate from other high schools, and maintain a degree of autonomy from the local school district in day-to-day policymaking and staff selection. The schools target former dropouts, teen parents, those who are over-age for their grade, and students with low test scores.

Cost

The cost of High School Redirection per student per year of program participation was estimated to be $3,455 in Cincinnati and $1,067 in Wichita. ³ These estimates represent the additional cost of the program beyond the cost per year of educating the student in a regular school within the district, which was estimated to be $7,256 and $5,686, respectively. No information is available for Stockton.