At-Risk, Dropout & Disconnected Youth, Alternative Education

Issue Brief: Dropout Prevention and Recovery

Quick Facts on the Dropout Problem:

Every Nine Seconds a Student Becomes a Dropout

Briefs

12/14/2009

 

Leveraging Resources to Create Alternative Pathways to Education and Employment Training for Disconnected Youth: Comprehensive reform strategies to serve disconnected youth ensure that young people have access to a range of services, including education, employment training, health, and mental health, to move them on a path to self-sufficiency. This event will profile successful efforts at the city-level to leverage a range of funding streams at federal, state, and local levels, private dollars, and resources within the community to create a comprehensive portfolio of options.  Panelists will also offer recommendations to the federal government on policies and strategies to leverage resources more effectively to serve disconnected youth.  Panelists include Jenny Bogoni, Vice President of Strategic Partnerships, Philadelphia Youth Network (PA), Ernest Dorsey, Youth Opportunity Project Director, Mayor’s Office of Employment Development, City of Baltimore (MD), and Andrew Moore, Senior Fellow, National League of Cities, Institute for Youth, Education & Families (DC). (Forum)

07/17/09

Preparing All Youth for College and Career Success is A Top Priority, and a Great Deal of Attention has Been Focused on the Need for Rigorous Academic Skills to Ensure Success. However, in order to ensure all youth have the skills to access and succeed not only in postsecondary education but in their careers as well, it is important to consider other types of skills that young people need, including problem-solving, critical thinking, employability, communication, collaboration, and personal responsibility. One way to help young people develop these skills is to provide opportunities outside of school to develop new knowledge and skills, experience real work, and interact with professionals. This forum will highlight how apprenticeships can engage high school students through hands-on learning and unique experiences under the guidance of skilled adults. The forum is based on the new book, The Means to Grow Up: Reinventing Apprenticeship as a Developmental Support in Adolescence, by Robert Halpern, which describes qualitative studies of apprenticeship programs for high school students, and will showcase two types of apprenticeship programs in the U.S. Robert Halpern, Professor, Erikson Institute for Graduate Study in Child Development (IL), Darla Burton, Regional Coordinator, Youth Apprenticeship Program, Southwest Wisconsin Consortium (WI),  Diane Postoian, Learning through Interest Partnership Coordinator, The Met Center (A Big Picture School) (RI), Jinel Britto, 2009 Graduate of The Met School (A Big Picture School) (RI).  (Forum Brief )

06/01/09

Preparing College-Ready High School Graduates: A Case Study of San Jose, CA:  This forum is the third in our forum series entitled “Laying the Groundwork for  a College-Going Culture,” focused on efforts to ensure more high school students graduate, both understanding their options for continued education and training and ready to succeed in college and careers.   This forum will examine the efforts of the San Jose Unified School District in California to ensure all students are prepared for success beyond high school, including through requiring all students to participate in a college preparatory curriculum and providing the necessary resources and support to ensure students are successful.  The San Jose Unified School District is a diverse urban district with 70% of students representing racial/ethnic minority groups. Efforts to increase the rigor of high school coursework for all students have been underway in San Jose since the mid-1990s. In 1998, San Jose became the first school district in the state of California to elevate its high school graduation requirements to match the requirements for entry into the University of California system. Don Iglesias, Superintendent of the San Jose Unified School District, Linda Murray, Acting Executive Director of Education Trust-West and former Superintendent of San Jose Unified School District, and Mark Walker, Managing Director of Community Affairs for Applied Materials, a community-based partner in college readiness initiatives in San Jose.  (Forum Brief) 

05/29/09

Academic and Support Strategies for College and Career Readiness:  This forum is the second in our three-part series entitled “Laying the Groundwork for a College-Going Culture,” focused on efforts to increase the number of young people who graduate from high school prepared to make informed decisions about continued education and training, and ready to succeed in college and careers.  Viewing education as continuum that allows all Americans to access additional education and training is critical to ensuring our ability to emerge from the current economic downturn and compete in a global society.  Presenters will include: Cecilia Cunningham, Executive Director, Middle College National Consortium, Angela N. Romans, New England Network Manager, Diploma Plus, Commonwealth Corporation, Nicole Farmer Hurd, National College Advising Corps, and Cassandra Castillo, Early College  High School student. (Forum Brief )

04/27/09

Redefining College Readiness: Efforts from Leading States This forum is the first in our series entitled “Laying the Groundwork for a College-Going Culture” focused on efforts to ensure more high school students graduate, both understanding their options for continued education and training and ready to succeed in college and careers.   At this event, presenters will both define critical indicators for college readiness as supported by the research and describe efforts in two states, Arkansas and Indiana, to create statewide high school graduation standards more closely aligned with expectations for success in postsecondary education and work. (FORUM Brief )

03/14/08

Improving Transition to Higher Education for Out-of-School Youth. This forum, co-sponsored by the American Youth Policy Forum (AYPF) and the National Youth Employment Coalition (NYEC), will highlight factors influencing the success of youth programs that provide support for formerly out-of-school youth as they transition to postsecondary education and employment. The session will feature NYEC’s policy recommendations intended to inform federal higher education and workforce development policy and representatives from local and national youth-serving organizations. (Forum Brief)

01/25/08

Improving the Transition from Middle Grades to High Schools:  The Role of Early Warning Indicators with Robert Balfanz, Associate Research Scientist, Center for Social Organization of Schools, Johns Hopkins University; Elaine Allensworth, Co-Director for Statistical Analysis, Consortium on Chicago School Research, University of Chicago; Craig Jerald, Independent Consultant, Break the Curve Consulting. (Forum Brief)

10/26/2007

Development and Implementation of Multiple Pathways to Graduation in New York City with JoEllen Lynch, CEO, Partnership Support Office, NYC Department of Education; Leah Hamilton, Director, Office of Multiple Pathways to Graduation, NYC Department of Education; Shane Mulhern, Senior Executive, Transfer Schools, New Visions for Public Schools, and Rachel Forsyth, Deputy Director for Community-Based Programs, Good Shepherd Services. (Forum Brief)

09/21/07

 

Exemplary CTE Districts and Programs with Gary Hoachlander, Executive Director, ConnectEd: The California Center for College and Career, Michael Hanlon, Founder, Health Careers Academy at Palmdale High School, California, Michael Owens, Associate Secretary, Adult Education and Workforce Development, Delaware Department of Education, Patrick Savini, Superintendent, Sussex Technical School District, Delaware. (Forum Brief) 

07/20/2007

The Role of Career and Technical Education in High School Reform: Linking Secondary and Postsecondary Education through CTE with Dr. Laurel Adler, Superintendent, East San Gabriel Regional Occupational Program, West Codiva, CA and Mark Whitlock, CEO, Central Education Center, Coweta County, GA. (Forum Brief and webcast)

06/22/2007

The Role of Career and Technical Education in High School Reform: State Efforts to Integrate CTE with Rigorous Standards with Patrick Ainsworth, Assistant Superintendent for Secondary, Postsecondary & Adult Education, California Department of Education, Kathy Oliver, Assistant State Superintendent, Maryland Department of Education, and Alex Harris, Senior Policy Analyst, National Governors Association. (Forum Brief and webcast)

05/10/2007

 

The Role of Career and Technical Education in High School Reform: Career and Technical Education Responding to Industry Needs with Phyllis Eisen, Vice President, The Manufacturing Institute and Executive Director, The Center for Workforce Success, Duane Crum, California State Director, Project Lead the Way. (forum Brief and webcast)

04/13/2007

Opening the Door to the American Dream: Increasing Higher Education Access and Success for Immigrants with Wendy Erisman, Senior Research Analyst and Director of Evaluation, Institute for Higher Education Policy, and Deborah A. Santiago, Vice President for Policy and Research, Excelencia in Education, and Margie McHugh, Co Director, National Center on Immigrant Integration Policy, Migration Policy Institute. (forum Brief)

03/8/2007

 

Philadelphia’s Project U-Turn, Citywide Efforts to Address the Dropout Problem with Paul Vallas, Chief Executive Officer, School District of Philadelphia, Ruth Curran Neild, Research Scientist, Center for Social Organization of Schools at Johns Hopkins University,  Courtney Collins-Shapiro, Director, Multiple Pathways to Graduation, School District of Philadelphia, Laura Shubilla, President of the Philadelphia Youth Network. (forum Brief)

01/26/2007

Results from A National Study of Mathematics in Career and Technical Education with Jim Stone, Prinicpal Researcher, University of Minnesota, Joe Fullerton, Program Development Specialist, Lenape Technical School, Ford City, PA, and Jeff Linko, Teacher, Lenape Technical School, Ford City, PA. (Forum Brief)

11/20/2006

 

Academic and Workforce Development Programs for Court-Involved Youth, A Youth Development Approach with Thomas M. Buzbee, Executive Director, Gulf Coast Trades Center and Joe McLaughlin, Court Employment Project Director, CASES. (forum BRIEF)

09/29/2006

Secondary-Postsecondary Learning Options: Best Practices in the Field with Ron Kindell, Director, Miami Valley Tech Prep Consortium, Chery Wagonlander, Principal, Mott Middle College High School, and Jennifer Brown Lerner, Program Associate, American Youth Policy Forum. (FORUM Brief)

9/8/2006

Dropout Reconnection as a Local Economic Development Strategy with Andrew O. Moore, Senior Consultant, National League of Cities, Deborah Feldman, Administrator, Montgomery County, Ohio, and Karen Sitnick, Director, Mayor’s Office of Employment Development, Baltimore, Maryland. (forum Brief)

3/31/2006

Reconnecting Out-of-School Youth: Two Public High School Principals Talk about How They Re-engage Dropouts (Release of Whatever It Takes: How Twelve Communities Are Reconnecting Out-of-School Youth) with James Anderson, Principal, Horizonte Instruction and Training Center, William Tracy, Principal, Daylight/Twilight High School, Trenton, Nancy Martin, Senior Program Associate, American Youth Policy Forum, and Samuel Halperin, Senior Fellow, American Youth Policy Forum. (Forum Brief)

2/14/2006

Higher Education Opportunities for Foster Youth, a report by The Institute for Higher Education Policy with Tom Wolanin, Senior Associate, The Institute for Higher Education Policy. (Congressional Briefing)

2/10/2006

Higher Education Opportunities for Foster Youth, a report by The Institute for Higher Education Policy with Tom Wolanin, Senior Associate, The Institute for Higher Education Policy, Jamie Merisotis, President, The Institute for Higher Education Policy, and Erin Renner, Assistant Director, Advisory Committee on Student Financial Assistance. (Forum Brief)

1/13/2006  

Charter Schools Providing Academically-Based Workforce Development for Out-of-School Youth: with Ann Higdon, president and founder of Improved Solutions of Urban Systems ISUS and Phil Matero, Deputy Director of the Los Angeles Conservation Corps. (Forum Brief)  

10/21/2005

Coordinated Efforts Focused on Workforce Development for Out of School Youth in Portland with Carole Smith, Director of Alternative Education, Portland Public Schools, Linda Huddle, Director, Alternative Programs/PCC Prep, Portland Community College, and Andrew Mason, Executive Director, Open Meadow Alternative Schools. (forum Brief)

6/24/2005

One Third of a Nation: The Dropout Challenge and Strategies to Reconnect Youth, with Paul Barton, Policy Information Center, Educational Testing Service, Linda Harris, Senior Policy Analyst, Center for Law and Social Policy, and Sally Prouty, President, National Association of Service and Conservation Corps. (Forum Brief)

3/18/2005

The Paradox of Rising Teen Joblessness in An Expanding Labor Market, featuring Professor Andrew Sum, Director of the Center for Labor Market Studies, Northeastern University.  Professor Sum presented research aimed at increasing awareness of effective career preparation and workforce development policy and programs for disadvantaged youth and young adults. (Forum Brief)

12/3/2004

What Do You Know About How the GED Tests Empower Young Adults? Joan Auchter, GED Testing Service Executive Director, stressed four major points in her presentation. First, GED Tests demand achievement. Second, GED Tests allow people to prove what they know. Third, GED diploma holders reflect the mosaic of America. Finally, GED Tests offer an opportunity to grow. (Forum Brief)

5/7/2004

Early and Middle College High Schools: Connecting High School and College for At-Risk Youth, Middle college high schools are schools that collaborate with postsecondary institutions to offer students who have traditionally been underrepresented in postsecondary education the opportunity to earn college credit at the same time as they earn a high school diploma. At this American Youth Policy Forum, panelists associated with middle and early college high school programs spoke about the need for these schools, the grant initiative, and changes in education policy that would provide better support for this promising approach. (Forum Brief)

3/5/2004

Follow-up Study of 900 YouthBuild Graduates, with Andrew Hahn, Center for Youth and Communities, Brandeis University; Dorothy Stoneman, YouthBuild USA; and several graduates of YouthBuild. (Forum Brief)

11/22/2002     

Minority Student Achievement Network, with Robert Smith, Superintendent, Arlington Co. VA Public Schools, Allan Alson, Superintendent, Evanston, IL Public Schools, and Rossi Ray-Taylor, Superintendent, Ann Arbor, MI Public Schools. (Forum Brief)

7/26/2002

What’s Up? The Rapid Increase of Young People in GED & Adult Education Programs: co-sponsored by the New York Citywide School to Work Alliance, the Literacy Assistance Center (LAC), and The New York City Professional Development Consortium (NYCPDC), with Jean Thomases, Member, Board of Directors, Literacy Assistance Center, and co-author of CBO Schools as moderator; Edith Gnanadass, Deputy Executive Director, Turning Point/Discipleship Outreach Ministries (TP/DOM); Alan Werner, Deputy Superintendent for Instruction and Student Services, Office of Alternative, Adult and Continuing Education, Schools and Programs, New York City Board of Education; and Martha Kamber, Director of Supportive Services, Sunset Park Adult and Family Education Program. (Forum Brief)

2/12/2002

Breakfast Briefing: Powerful Pathways: Framing Options and Opportunities for Vulnerable Youth, with Chris Sturgis, Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, and Talmira Hill. (Forum Brief)

2/8/2002

Residential Education: The Need for a New Option, with Heidi Goldsmith, the Director of the Coalition for Residential Education; the Honorable James R. Milliken Presiding, the Director of the San Pasqual Academy; and Father Leo Armbrust, the Director of Rennaisance Village. (Forum Brief)

12/12/2001

Education Reform Through Standards: What Does it Mean for Youth in Alternative Education Settings? co-sponsored with the National Youth Employment Coalition, Betsy Brown Ruzzi, National Center for Education and the Economy, Joan Auchter, GED Testing Service, William Diehl, Center for Youth Development and Education, Vinetta Jones, Howard University. (Forum Brief)

11/16/2001

Great Expectations, The E-Rate at Five: New Models and Policies to Maximize the Impact of America's Investments in Educational Technology with Norris Dickard, Senior Associate,Communications Policy Program, Benton Foundation, Margaret Honey, Director, Center for Children and Technology, Andy Gersick, a Researcher at CCT, and Chris Dede, Timothy E. Wirth Professor of Learning Technologies, Graduate School of Education, Harvard University. (Forum Brief)

10/27/2000

National Commission on the Causes and Prevention of Violence, report of the Milton S. Eisenhower Foundation. (Forum Brief)

1/29/1999

Rethinking Orphanages for the 21st Century: Residential Schools for At-Risk Children and Youth, with Heidi Goldsmith, Executive Director, International Center for Residential Education; Joseph Devlin, Head of Girard College, PA; Frank Frame, Scotland School for Veterans' Children; and Edward Gotgard, Boston University Residential Charter School. (Forum Brief)

10/23/1998

The Educational and Labor Market Performance of GED Recepients, with David Bosel, Senior Research Associate, Office of Educational Research and Improvement, U.S. Department of Education and Nabeel Alsalam, Congressional Budget Office. (Forum Brief)

3/6/1998

The Role of School Choice in Increasing Access to Quality Education, with Clint Bolick, Vice President and Director of Litigation, Institute for Justice and Ginny Walden, Community Outreach Coordinator, FOCUS (Friends of Choice in Urban Schools). (Forum Brief)

10/18/1996

Forum: Can Schools Help Build the Entrepreneurial Economy? Lessons from the Real (Rural Entrepreneurship Through Action Learning) Experience, with Rick Larson, National Director, REAL, and Tyler Gardner, a 1996 graduate of the REAL program in Broadus, Montana, and now a small business owner. (Forum Brief)

10/6/1995

Strategies and Successes In School Dropout Prevention, with Jay Smink, Executive Director, National Dropout Prevention Center, Clemson University. (Forum Brief)

 

Trip Reports

05/14/2008-
05/15/2008      

Helping Policymakers Understand High School Redesign Dropout Prevention And Persistence to Graduation, Louisville, Kentucky  AYPF planned a field trip that showcased promising programs and practices, as well as other innovative methods that Kentucky is employing to ensure a comprehensive approach to high school improvement, with a specific emphasis on dropout prevention.  (Field Trip)

12/6/2007-
12/7/2007

Site Visit to New York City, December 6-7, 2007: How New York City is meeting the varied needs of Out-of-School youth through Multiple Pathways to Graduation, with site visits to West Brooklyn Community High School, John Adams Young Adult Borough Center, and Manhattan Hunter High School for the Sciences and meetings with NYC Department of Education and other key city officials. (Trip Report)

12/5/2007-
12/7/2007

Local Leader Trip to Newark, NJ and New York City, NY, December 5-7, 2007:  Reengaging Disconnected Youth and Expanding Opportunities for High School and Cross System Collaboration.  In partnership with the National League of Cities, Institute for Youth, Education, and Families' Technical Assistance Project, Municipal Leadership for Disconnected Youth.  Programs visited served a wide range of disconnected youth including out-of-school youth, returning offenders, and young people ageing out of foster care. (Trip Report)

10/18/2007-
10/19/2007

State Policy Trip to Miami, Florida, October 18-19, 2007: Career Pathways and K-12 Education. Highlights from this trip include meeting with Rudy Crew, Superintendent of Miami-Dade Country Public Schools, as well as other policy and education experts at the state and local levels. In addition, we visited Miami Edison Senior High School, MacArthur South Senior High School, and Robert Morgan Educational Center. (Trip Report)

11/15/2006-
11/16/2006

State Policy Trip to Indiana, November 15-16, 2006: Supporting Students At Risk of Dropping Out and Increasing Course Rigor.  Highlights from this trip include meetings with State Superintendent of Public Instruction Suellen Reed, state legislators, representatives from the Governor’s Office, Department of Public Instruction, higher education, and the business community, as well as visits to the Lawrence Early College High School for Science and Technologies and Shelbyville High School. (trip report)

5/31/2005-
6/1/2005

Site Visit to Boston, MA , with visits to Another Course to College, Boston Community Leadership Academy, Hyde Square Task Force, Boston Collegiate Charter School, and Boston Day and Evening Academy and meetings with Superintendent Payzant and the partners in the high school reform efforts. (TRIP REPORT)

4/22/2005

Latin American Youth Center's YouthBuild Program. One day field trip in Washington, DC to explore the work of this dynamic, multi-faceted community-based organization and its impact on young people. (Trip Report)

2/14/2005

Field Trip: Exploring Service-Learning as a Way to Increase Student Academic Performance and Civic Involvement visit to Friendship Edison Public Carter School in Washington, DC. The field tip featured a tour and discussion on the adoption, implementation and sustainability of service-learning as a way to engage students in increasing academic and civic skills. (Trip Report)

3/17/2003 -
3/19/2003

Education, Community and Workforce Development in Rural Mississippi. Field Trip to to learn about statewide education reform initiatives, community organizing for education reform, and successful after-school and out-of-school youth programs in the Delta region of Mississippi.  (Trip Report)

12/3/2002 -
12/5/2002

Building and Strengthening Linkages between Traditional and Nontraditional Education Systems in Austin, TX. The study mission was jointly sponsored by the American Youth Policy Forum and the National Youth Employment Coalition. Members of the Austin Group, a volunteer group of organizations, agencies and individuals dedicated to providing quality educational options and resources for vulnerable youth, also participated. (Trip Report)

11/6/2002

Visit to DC Youth Opportunity Grant Demonstration Project: A Site Visit to two Youth Opportunity Centers funded by the District of Columbia Department of Employment Services Youth Opportunity Grant. Meeting with Special Assistant to the Director of D.C. DOES and the Director of the DC Youth Opportunity Initiative and visits to the Latin American Youth Center and the United Planning Organization. (Trip Report)

7/18/2002

Friendship House and Covenant House in DC-the Role of Community Based Organizations in Providing Youth Services, Washington, DC. (Trip Report)

5/10/2001 -
5/11/2001

How Does A City Effectively Serve All Its Youth, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, with visits to Edison High School (a Talent Development model), Frankford High School (career-themed small learning communities), University City High School and Drew School (K-8) (service-learning through school-university partnerships), Youth for Change Charter School (YouthBuild model), and a Youth Opportunity Center. (Trip Report)

8/9/2000 -
8/11/2000

Alternative Education Programs for Youth, with visits to Eagle Rock School (Estes Park, CO), Service Conservation Corps, Rocky Mountain National Park and Denver, and meetings with the Superintendent, Thompson School District (a New American High School District). (Trip Report)

3/17/2000

National Guard — Free State Youth ChalleNGe Program, Aberdeen, MD. (Trip Report)

1/14/2000

Programs for Neighborhood Youth, Including YouthBuild, Latin American Youth Center, Washington, DC. (Trip Report)

4/16/1998 -
4/17/1998

Urban Education Reform: The Boston Experience, with visits to Jeremiah Burke High School, Woodrow Wilson Middle School, Carney Hospital, Bunker Hill Community College and University School at Action for Boston Community Development, Inc. (Trip Report)

8/7/1996 -
8/9/1996

Field Trip: Educational Innovations in Utah, Salt Lake, Clearfield and Ogden, Utah. (Trip Report)

7/26/1996

Field Trip: Connecting Youth, Work and Community, Visions Youthworks, Harrisburg, PA, with John Briscoe, Executive Director and visits with participants in the Visions Youthworks program. (Trip Report)

 

Publications

View PDF	Learning Around the Clock:  Benefits of Expanded Learning Opportunities for Older Youth identifies and describes Expanded Learning Opportunities (ELOs) that improve academic performance, college and career preparation, social and emotional development, and health and wellness outcomes for underserved youth. The term “expanded learning opportunity” is used to describe the range of programs and activities available to young people that occur beyond regular school hours. ELOs include traditional afterschool activities with an academic focus, but also incorporate activities such as internships with employers, independent study in alternative settings, classes on college campuses for high school students, and wraparound support services. Expanded learning opportunities are an effective use of resources to prepare youth for the complexities that face them as adults. The underlying message drawn from our review of the evaluations is that expanded learning opportunities (ELOs) work. ELOs deserve ongoing and expanded support and to be fully viewed as a major contributor in the preparation of youth for postsecondary education, careers, and civic engagement. Learning Around the Clock:  Benefits of Expanded Learning Opportunities for Older Youth is an easy-to-read guide designed to help national, state, and local policymakers and practitioners better understand the wide-array of benefits ELOs provide and the programmatic and structural elements of successful ELOs.  Included in Learning Around the Clock:  Benefits of Expanded Learning Opportunities for Older Youth are profiles of 22 ELOs that have proven results for youth across a range of indicators.
View PDF	Federal, State, and Local Roles Supporting Alternative Education This white paper examines the roles that various levels of government play through legislation, policy, and other initiatives that support quality alternative education programs to reconnect youth to education and the workplace. It raises issues for policymakers at all levels to consider in facilitating the development of expanded alternative education pathways, which reduce the number of students dropping out of school and provide well-lit reentry points for those who leave school before obtaining a diploma.
View PDF	Whatever It Takes: How Twelve Communities Are Reconnecting Out-of-School Youth This report documents what committed educators, policymakers, and community leaders across the country are doing to reconnect out-of-school youth to the social and economic mainstream. It provides background on the serious high school dropout problem and describes in-depth what twelve communities are doing to reconnect dropouts to education and employment training. It also includes descriptions of major national program models serving out-of-school youth.
View PDF	Youth Court: A Community Solution for Embracing At-Risk Youth--A national Update The report builds upon research previously conducted by the Urban Institute and an extensive survey of youth court programs conducted by the National Youth Court Center.  It provides up-to-date data to give policymakers and the public an overview of youth court programs, their characteristics, and benefits. The report’s survey to programs garnered a 40% return rate, which has yielded a successful view of the current youth court landscape.   The report’s findings cover topics such as: program completion, cost, returns on investment, impact on youth offenders and volunteers, educational and civic opportunities, program sustainability, and recommendations to policymakers.
View PDF	Does Religious Participation Help Keep Adolescents in School? As policymakers, parents, and community leaders continue to seek ways to promote the educational success of youth, AYPF presents “Does Religious Participation Help Keep Adolescents in School?” which explores the potential benefit to youth of associating with a religious organization.  This report summarizes existing research on the importance of organizational involvement, both religious and “secular,” in promoting the educational success of youth, and then goes on to present the results of a new empirical study aimed at comparing the impact of religious and secular forms participation.  Findings of this study indicate that most forms of religious participation do contribute to on-time graduation from high school and total years of educational attainment. These conclusions persist when the sample is limited to poor youth or minority youth.  Recommendations identify numerous strategies that public officials can pursue to reduce obstacles to religious participation among youth, as well as encourage religious institutions to take a more active role in teen success, all while respecting principles of separation of church and state.