Whatever It Takes: How Twelve Communities

Are Reconnecting Out-of-School

YouthIn cooperation with

Council of the Great City SchoolsNational Association of Secondary School Principals

National Conference of State LegislaturesNational League of Cities

National School Boards Association

Central Question

What can be done to reconnect our young people to opportunities for building useful lives in work, family, and citizenship?

Case Studies of Communities

• A sampling, illustrating various modes of reconnecting out-of-school youth to education, employment, and civic participation

• A practical resource

• Not a survey

12 Communities

• Austin, Texas

• Baltimore, Maryland

• Camden, New Jersey

• Jefferson County (Louisville), Kentucky

• Milwaukee, Wisconsin

• Montgomery County (Dayton), Ohio

• Oakland, California

• Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

• Pima County (Tucson), Arizona

• Portland, Oregon

• Salt Lake City, Utah

• Trenton, New Jersey

National Program Models

• Job Corps

• Jobs for America’s Graduates

• National Guard Youth ChalleNGe

• Opportunities Industrialization Centers

• YouthBuild

• Youth Service and Conservation Corps

• Youth Opportunity Grant Program

Dropout Recovery Efforts Are Varied

• Exist at the program, district, city, county, state, and national level

• Assist with GED preparation, high school and associate’s degree completion, and employment preparation

• Offered by school districts, CBOs, community colleges, and private companies

• Include actual programs, as well as policy initiatives encouraging such programming

Program Characteristics

• Open-Entry/Open-Exit

• Flexible Scheduling and Year-round Learning

• Teachers As Coaches, Facilitators and Crew Leaders

• Real-World, Career-Oriented Curricula

Program Characteristics

• Opportunities for Employment

• Clear Codes of Conduct with Consistent Enforcement

• Extensive Support Services

• A Portfolio of Options for a Varied Group

Successful Efforts

• In Portland, OR, Portland Community College is offering former OSY the opportunity to complete high school and an associate’s degree or significant college credit.

• In Montgomery County, OH, The Out-of-School Youth Initiative has reduced the dropout rate dramatically by targeting programming to 16-24 year-olds without a high school diploma.

• In Philadelphia, the Reintegration Initiative puts programs and supports in place to prevent young people exiting the juvenile justice system from reoffending.

• YouthBuild programs across the country are helping young people obtain a GED or high school diploma while learning work skills by building affordable housing.

The varied programs and policies described in this report are possible for any community to implement.

The nation has more than enough models and know-how to be able to reclaim America’s dropouts.

The varied programs and policies described in this report are possible for any community to implement.

The nation has more than enough models and know-how to be able to reclaim many more of America’s dropouts.