Alternative Schools

1
Alternative Schools

• Detroit Lakes Area Learning Center
• Lisa Weber
• 218-844-5687

2
Graduation Incentives Criteria

• Performs substantially below same age peers on
  achievement test
• One year behind progress towards graduation
• Pregnant or parenting teens
• Assessed chemical abuse/dependent
• Expelled or excluded
• Referred by S.A.T
• Other

• Victim of physical or sexual abuse
• Assessed mental health problems
• Homelessness (6 months)
• ESI or LEP
• Withdrawn or chronically truant
• Basic skills area substantially below same age
  peers (math, reading, and writing)

3
Intervention Based Education

• Overcome barriers
• Celebrate and develop gifts
• 32 community partners
• High school SAT and referral process
• Detroit Lakes, Frazee, Lake Park-Audubon,and
  surrounding schools
• Parents
• Service Groups

4
Where and how can we affect public policy to
advance at-risk youth?

• By having the courage to address the issues that
  cause them to be at risk
• Stop looking for who is at fault and start
  sharing resources to teach families and young
  learners skills to overcome their challenges
• Remove the walls between home, school, work,
  social, and personal life by providing a safe
  environment that supports positive change and
  team work

5
DLALC Educational Strategies

• Differentiated Instruction
• Performance Based Education
• Research in an area of interest
• Restorative Measures/Circle
• Community Interaction
• Work based learning
• Service Learning

6
3 High School ALC Programs

• Seatbased Program (60)
• Independent Study (20-150)
• Recovery School (12)

7
Community Interaction Goals

• Broaden awareness and appreciation of their
  community
• Develop skills necessary to be effective
  community members
• Develop awareness of their own likes and dislikes
  as well as develop gifts
• Develop skills necessary to be self reliable and
  capable to be responsible for a family if they
  are in that position

8
Classroom Topics and Skills

• Life Skills
• Checking
• Credit cards
• Budgeting
• Paying bills
• Consumerism
• Insurance
• Owning a car
• Reading wanted ads
• W-4s
• Taxes

• Career Exploration
• Educational options
• Finance options
• Job Applications
• Interview Skills
• Termination Skills
• SCAN Skills
• Financial Aid
• College visits

9
School Projects

• Sucker creek
• MAAP STARS
• Early Childhood Library
• Day of Caring
• United Way
• Rodeo
• Highway Clean up
• Sunnyside Nursing Home
• Elementary Halloween Party

10
Individual Examples

• Solutions Inc
• DLCCC
• BTD Manufacturing
• McDonalds
• SJE Rhombus
• Elementary Schools
• Lake Shirts
• Tires Plus
• Lakes Crisis Center

• Restaurants
• Car Dealerships
• Car parts shop
• Resorts
• Trucking companies
• Local Farms
• Construction
• Teaching Assistants (adv. High school courses)

11
Purpose

• Develop work, personal, social, and academic
  skills
• Build on gifts and strengths while tying them to
  the world of work
• Increase an appreciation and value for the role
  education plays in increasing ones value in the
  workplace
• Increasing disconnected youth to their community
  so they can play a vital role in their community

12
A Team Approach to Services

• Bring the classroom into the field and bring the
  skills development back into the school and into
  the home. Education is life. Life is education.
  Anything that gets in the way of that needs to
  be overcome.
• Lisa Weber
• lweber_at_detlakes.k12.mn.us