Project ARJO--"Academic Recovery Through Job Opportunity." Report on First Year of Operation

DOCUMENT RESUME ED 305 555 CG 021 566 TITLE Project ARJO--"Academic Recovery through Job Opportunity." Report on First Year of Operation. INSTITUTION Sandy Union High School District 2, OR. SPONS AGENCY Department of Education, Washington, DC. PUB DATE 88 GRANT ERI-G860074 NOTE 53p.; For report on second year of project, see CG 021 567. PUB TYPE Reports - General (140) EDRS PRICE MF01/PC03 Plus Postage. DESCRIPTORS Agency Cooperation; *Dropout Programs; Dropouts; *Educationally Disadvantaged; *Employment Opportunities; Excellence in Education; High Risk Students; High Schools; High School Students; *Potential Dropouts ABSTRACT This document reports on the first year of operation of Project ARJO: Academic Recovery through Job Opportunity, a program developed by Sandy Union High School District #2 in Sandy, Oregon under a Title VI Excellence in Education grant from the U.S. Department of Education. The primary objective of Project ARJO is the academic recovery of potential and actual high school dropouts between the ages of 15 and 21 through employment/education linkages. The project's multi-agency approach to achieving this objective is explained, including the development of an off-campus employability skills/job search office, the cooperation of social service agencies, and the use of the resources of Sandy Union High School, particularly the Career Development Center. The population of academically disadvantaged and at-risk students targeted by the project is described and three educational alternatives offered to participants are discussed. This report provides a review of the philosophy, methodology, and day-to-day procedures which were used to develop and operate the program. It contains sections on the background of Project ARJO, a detailed discussion of the treatment process used, the Sandy Union High School Career Development Center, qualitative results of Project ARJO, program responses and adaptation to local conditions, and quantitative outcomes of the project.(NB) Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. *********************************************************************** REPORT ON FIRST YEAR OF OPERATION OF PROJECT ARJO "ACADEMIC RECOVERY THROUGH JOB OPPORTUNITY" Sandy Union High School District #2 17100 Bluff Road Sandy, Oregon 97055 %.0 Funded through Title VI: Lrt Excellence in Education Grant r4 U.S. Department of Education 0.10 CO C.) U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION Office 01 EdttCatiOnal Research and Improvement Report prepared by: EDUCATIONAL. RESOURCES INFORMATION Gary Knepper CENTER (ERIC) firsdocument has been reproduced as Project ARJO received from the person or organization originating it. Coordinator/Counselor O Minor changes nave been made to improve reproduction Quality Points°, vievior oprnions stated intnisdocu ment do not necessarily representofficial OER I position or policy 2 BEST COPYAVAILABLE Section A: Introduction to Project ARJO This is the report for the first year of operation of Project ARJO: "Academic Recovery through Job Opportunity." Sandy Union High School District #2 in Sandy, Oregon, estab- lished the project under a Title VI: Excellence in Educa- tion grant from the U.S. Department of Education. The primary objective of Project ARJO, as proposed in the grant, is to academically recover potential and actual high school dropouts, ages fifteen to twenty-one years, through employment/education linkages. Project ARJO has been designed to accomplish the objective through a multi-agency approach including: (1) the development of an off-campus employability skills/job search office; (2) social service agencies; and (3) the utilization of the resources of Sandy Union High School, particularly the Career Development Center. Youth targeted for the program are academically disadvantaged or at-risk. Such individuals generally fall into one or more of the following categories: (a) perform below grade level in reading, writing, or mathematics; (b) have been unable or unwilling to adapt to the traditional class- room environment; (c) lack motivation to learn; or (d) have experienced attendance problems. In terms of employment, the youth (e) have not developed marketable vocational skills and (f) will encounter difficulty in locating and keeping a job without special assistance. However, any youth who is interested in the program can enroll since this encourages widespread participation by the community and prevents stereotyping of clients. In the establishment of a support system for the individual through a client-centered vocational counselor at the off- campus office, related support services, and actual employment experience, Project ARJO seeks to retain or return the client to an educational environment. Through the Project, there are three educational alternatives offered. The first is re-enrollment in a regular high school program at Sandy Hign School or elsewhere. Another option is enrollment in a high school completion program leading to General Equivalency Degree (G.E.D.) through the local community college. The G.E.D. classes can be taken on the college campus located twelve miles away in Gresham or at a site in Sandy two nights per week. A third option is enrollment in a modified high school completion program such as that available through the Tri-City Alternc,- tive School located about twenty miles away in Oregon City. (1) 3 Section B: Background of Project ARJO In order to provide information on Project ARJO which can be used to replicate the program in other localities, a narrative format is employed in the report.This means that a descriptive style is used to report the establishment and development of the Project, the results and any unanticipated outcomes. The Sandy Union High School District encompasses an area of over 700 square miles in Clackamas County, Oregon. According to recent estimates, the town of Sandy has a population of approximately 3,500 within its incorporated limits. The area served by the high school is mostly rural and mountain- ous, consisting of small owner-operated farms and busines- ses. Some students live_in isolated locations nearly forty miles from the high school, which provides bus transporta- tion. Timber production is the only large-scale industry, but independent owner-operated logging enterprises also pre- dominate in this business. Sandy Union High School enrolls over 1200 students in grades nine through twelve from five separate elementary districts, each of which has its own administration and school board. A staff of seventy teachers at the high school provides a diversity of courses for a comprehensive educatic-ial program, including ten approved vocational clusters. Statistics for the graduating class of 1986 show that 34% of the in- coming freshman in 1982 did not graduate with their class, nor did they request to have their acaeemic records sent to another educational institution. Such a transcript request is necessary to effectuate a transfer to another school. Due to the high dropout rate, Sandy Union High School, the community, and several agencies cooperated to provide the local support and technical assistance necessary to secure the grant from the U.S. Department of Education. The steering committee, composed of the agency representatives, became the Project ARJO Advisory Board after the award of a $20,000 grant in July, 1986. Also the Board secured the local thirty percent match which produced a budget of over $26,000, including in-kind services. The funding provided for office rent, cost of utilities, purchase of equipment and supplies, expanded services from the Career Development Center, and salary for a part-time clerical assistant. Members of the Advisory Board as of September 30, 1987 were Dennis Crow, Principal of Sandy Union High School; Darrell Dempster, a local realtor and community leader; Betty Rankin, youth employment specialist for Clackamas County Employment, (2) 4 Training and Business Services (the Job Training Partner- ship Act Agency). Also on the Board were Dr. Mark Mullins, a local chiropractor and service club representative; Kathy Walter, community resource specialist for Parrott Creek Ranch Family Services; and Phyllis Rader, a local business- woman and Sandy Chamber of Commerce representative. Other members were Tom Reber, the City Manager of Sandy; and Dr. Welcome Rumbaugh, the Director of the Sandy Union High School Career Center. The Board meets monthly to assess progress and provide local community oversight of the grant. Parrott Creek Ranch Family Services was instrumental in the development of a proposal for ACTION, the federal agency which administers the VISTA program (Volunteers in Ser7ice to America.) VISTA was created by the Economic Opportunity Act of 1964. It provided full-time volunteers to help com- munities overcome the problems of poverty through the mobil- ization of resources and involvement of the low-incomepop- ulation in the development of solutions. The Volunteer served for a specified time and receiveda subsistence allowance to help meet basic needs. In operation, VISTA resembled a domestic version of the Peace Corps. The assignment of a VISTA Volunteer, whose stipendwas paid by the federal government, allowed part of the Project ARJO funding to be used to provide additional services from Ca- reer Center Director, Dr. Welcome Rumbaugh. Off-Campus Center A significant feature of the Project ARJO design has been the development of an off-campus center where intensive Job Search and Employability Skills Workshops

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