New data briefs on CA alternative schools

Data shows that alternative schools successfully re-engage youth in schools, according to a new data brief from the John W. Gardner Center for Youth and their Communities at Stanford University.

“On average, the positive transition rate for students in these schools mirrors the four-year cohort graduation rates of the average traditional high school,” said Jorge Ruiz de Velasco, deputy director of the Gardner Center.

A positive transition can include graduation, completion of GED, or transfer to a community college, among other similar milestones.

The data further shows that alternative schools, of which there are nearly 1,000 statewide, can successfully re-engage youth in school.

The brief is “the first publicly available data on these schools and youth in more than a decade,” Ruiz de Velasco said.

Alternative high schools include continuation schools, community schools, court schools and special alternative charter schools. There are 178,000 students enrolled in alternative high schools statewide, totaling “about 11-15% of all California high school students in grades 10-12,” according to Ruiz de Velasco.

The data brief can be read at this link.