Experiments, alternative schools thrive in Denver

Jennifer Miller, Rocky Mountain News

Published May 20, 2005 at midnight

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Communities across the country are working to improve high schools and address concerns about low graduation rates, particularly in urban districts and those with poor and increasingly diverse student populations.

Denver Peak Academy

DPA charter school is a small school set to open in August a block from Denver Urban Peak, a shelter for homeless and runaway teenagers.

Students and staff will have a say in officially naming the school, said Gina Nocera, education program director for the Jared Polis Foundation, which is partially funding the school. Polis, a businessman, is a member of the Colorado State Board of Education.

The school will serve at-risk students 17 to 20 years old who will use the Diploma Plus model of self-paced learning based on proficiency tests. Students must take a college course as part of the curriculum.

• What the research shows: Diploma Plus operates at 16 sites, primarily in New England, where 72 percent of students who took college courses in 2004 got a grade of C or better.

A study conducted for the Center for Youth Development and Education, which oversees Diploma Plus, showed 62 percent of students who were enrolled in Diploma Plus since September 2002 have graduated.

• Pros: Students who aren't being served by Denver Public Schools because of unstable living conditions, substance abuse or other problems get a chance at a high school diploma and receive social services.

• Con: Building a curriculum for students with varying academic and family backgrounds is difficult.

• Cost: Denver Public Schools provides $6,313 per student. The Polis Foundation has provided $20,000 for hiring and professional development of a principal. The Colorado Small Schools Initiative matched the grant. The Polis Foundation contributed an additional $20,000 for faculty training on Diploma Plus.

• Web sites: www.coloradoleague.org, www.jaredpolis.org/

prog.choice.shtml and www.cyde.us/diplomaplus/

about.html

Florence Crittenton School

This DPS alternative school for teenage mothers helps them get a middle and high school education and provides resources for them to learn to be nurturing mothers, prevent repeat pregnancies, get to college and get work experience.

Once a home for pregnant mothers, the program includes an on-site infant/toddler child-care program, counseling and home visitation program. Classes can be as small as three students and mix academic levels. The school also helps young fathers.

• What the research shows: School officials said 100 percent of eligible seniors graduated last year.

• Pros: Small classes, child care and the ability to bring children to class help young mothers continue their education. Students get help with scholarships, jobs and college tours.

• Cons: The social activities of a traditional high school aren't available, and serving students of different educational levels is challenging.

• Cost: About $10,000 per student per year. Administrators from Parent Pathways, the group that runs the school, say it's hard to measure how much funding comes from public and private sources.

A rough idea of the split would be 25 percent public funds per student, including reimbursements for child care and food allowance from the government. About 75 percent comes from child advocacy groups such as the Daniels Fund, Rose Community Foundation and Bonfils-Stanton Foundation.

• Web site: www.humanservicesinc.org/school.htm

Small learning communities

Keeping a small number of students connected to the same teacher in high school, as happens in middle school, allows more personal attention. Teachers organize and design classes together. A teacher also acts as an adviser to a small group of students.

• What the research shows: A study of smaller learning communities in public schools in Kansas City, Kan., found the percentage of students graduating increased to 80 percent in 2004, compared with 40 to 47 percent before the program went into effect in 1997. The percentage of students scoring at proficient or advanced levels on reading tests increased to 40 percent from 25 percent.

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Low-income students — those who qualified for free- or reduced-price lunch as ninth graders in the fall of 1999 in Denver the year before — were less likely to graduate than students who weren't low-income, no matter what their ethnic group.

See the full graphic »

Grade point average was one of the three most significant predictors of whether a student would graduate from Denver Public Schools, according to an analysis of the class of eighth-graders who started DPS in the fall of 1999.

See the full graphic »

• Pros: Teachers develop stronger relationships with students and give them more personal attention. Teachers feel less isolated, and student problems can be identified early because teachers communicate.

• Cons: Scheduling students and teachers affects the master class schedule for the school, and the more students in small learning academies or groups, the greater the challenge. Fitting in required courses can be difficult. Hiring substitute teachers to create planning time for teachers can be expensive.

• Local examples: West High School implemented smaller learning communities in 2002 beginning with the freshman class and moving to the junior class this year. North High School launched ninth-grade teams this school year and a leadership training academy where freshmen learn study techniques, how to take notes and how to resolve conflicts, among other things.

• Cost: West High received a three-year $483,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Education for professional development and to help pay for substitute teachers.

• Web site: www.ed.gov/programs/slcp/index.html

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