Center for Learning Excellence helps state transform troubled youth

Since its establishment in August 2000, the University's Center for Learning Excellence (CLEX) has made great strides in ensuring that Ohio's youth at risk of school failure are back on track for educational success.

An affiliate of the John Glenn Institute for Public Service and Public Policy at Ohio State, the center is providing research, evaluation, staff training and technical assistance to 127 Alternative Education Grant programs that provide alternative school environments for truant and disruptive youths in 485 school districts statewide, said David W. Andrews, dean of the College of Human Ecology and director of the center.

"Within the first school year, these programs were providing education and support to more than 40,000 students," Andrews said. "Most of these are students who would have been spending unsupervised, idle time on the streets as the result of their inappropriate behavior in school. Instead, they are engaged in educational interventions designed to improve their overall well-being as well as that of their community."

A trained developmental psychologist, Andrews has extensive research experience focused on the effectiveness of prevention and intervention programs for high-risk adolescents, which included six years with the Oregon Social Learning Center. He joined Ohio State in 1996 to continue his research and became dean three years ago.

Andrews said the term "at risk" includes youth living in an environment that puts them in jeopardy, such as impoverished or high-crime neighborhoods. However, the center focuses on those who already have demonstrated behavior -- such as experimental drug use, disruptive actions or generally anti-social behavior -- that is a precursor to a more serious problem. The goal of the center is to intervene early with preventive measures.

"It's really a cycle of escalating problems that starts among at-risk middle school kids between seventh and ninth grades," Andrews said.

Students in grades seven through 12 attend one of the 127 alternative education programs, or schools, during the day for a short term (five to 30 days) or long term (six months to an entire school year). Most students receive multiple services while attending alternative schools, Andrews said, which include mental health services, juvenile justice services, and drug and alcohol intervention/prevention services. The curriculum blends academics with peer support groups, such as character education, anger management and decision-making.

While the schools are the primary target of funding, Andrews said CLEX is a launching point for a multitude of preventive measures for at-risk youth. Work is under way to promote after-school tutoring and activities within the Columbus Public Schools, and to enhance a new after-school program established by Columbus Mayor Michael Coleman.

"We know it is a community problem and the schools are one place to target, but, also, we have to have after-school programs, mentoring programs that establish relationships with other adults outside of the school day, and parent training," Andrews said.

While the center's reach is statewide, there is evidence of the benefits derived from the Center for Learning Excellence nearby. Rockbridge Academy, located on the grounds formerly occupied by Harding Hospital in Worthington, was set up as an alternative school site in the fall of 2001 to serve the Hilliard, Dublin, Worthington, Upper Arlington and Grandview Heights school districts. John Johnson, teacher and director of the academy, said the center has been very involved in the academy's progress.

"It played a very significant role in helping us problem solve issues and challenges that we had to address in setting up a program for the first time and in carrying out our first year of operations," Johnson said.

Particularly helpful was the center's 2001 Alternative Education Summer Institute, held at Ohio State June 17-20. A follow-up to an August 2000 educational summit, it brought together teachers and principals from the 127 alternative education programs around the state for training in best practices for serving at-risk youth. Johnson said the institute provided a valuable source of networking and helped him compare Rockbridge with what other alternative education programs across the state are doing.

The center helped arrange a visit to the Louisville City Schools to observe their use of technology in dealing with at-risk youth. Johnson also credited Al Neff, associate director of CLEX, for aiding in the development of a strategic plan to guide Rockbridge through the next five years.

So far, Andrews would label the work the center is doing with the Alternative Education Grant Program a success. The first quarter of data showed that a large majority -- approximately 86 percent -- of students who completed their alternative education program successfully returned to their regular school setting. Only 8 percent failed to receive a positive outcome associated with participation.

"I think the infrastructure is set up to have a very positive impact," Andrews said. "The task ahead is to make sure all of the programs are following the most effective and efficient strategies for working with high-risk kids."

Funding for the $40 million Alternative Education Grant Program was established in Gov. Bob Taft's 1999 executive budget, with support from the Ohio General Assembly, and is modeled after a three-year pilot program developed by the Ohio Attorney General's Office. The Ohio Department of Education administers the 127 alternative education grants that serve school districts across the state.

For more information about CLEX, call 247-6350 or e-mail Neff at neff.109@osu.edu.

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