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Giving a Fresh Start

When a student is poised to drop out of school, it is often the school counselor who guides him or her to online learning alternatives that can make all the difference.

Story and photo by Michael Heavener

Milwaukie, Oregon—It's 2:55 p.m. and I've just locked my keys in my car. My appointment with Milwaukie High School guidance counselor Susan Roberts is in five minutes. I decide being locked out of my car is an inconvenience that will have to wait.

Inside, I snake my way down a long hall. This wing of the school is like the command center of a construction site: a morass of desks, papers, and clutter set against blank white walls. Unsure of what Susan Rogers looks like, or whether I'm even headed the right way, I glance furtively into room after room hoping for some obvious sign—a Great Oz of Guidance Counseling—that will let me know where to stop.

Finally at the end of the hall, I find it. Oz it's not; more like Teen-Munchkin' Land. The joint is hopping. Students and administrators spill out of the office. Posters adorn the walls and knick-knacks and stuffed animals occupy the tabletops and windowsills. A full bowl of candy rests on a bookshelf by the door.

Susan is on the phone and waves me in. It's not long into our greetings, however, before a student is whisked in and Susan excuses herself and leaves the room with him. I'm left alone with a waiting boy and girl who are slowly twirling back and forth in the visitor chairs, and I inquire into the nature of their presence.

"Are you two part of the reason I'm here?" I ask.

"Oh, I hope not," says the girl, whose name is Mandy. "That can't be good."

Luckily, the conversation improves from there.

I learn that the boy, Brian, is enrolled in Milwaukie High School's E-School, the purpose of my visit. A computer-based program designed primarily to offer continuing education options to former and potential dropouts, the E-School is in its second year of operation. During the day, the E-School offers credit-recovery courses in core subjects to students who have failed or missed classes. Brian needs to make up a science credit and so is spending his elective period in the E-School where he can take the class online. I ask Brian what he thinks of E-School so far.

"It's a good way to make up the credits," says Brian. "Since it takes only 30 or 40 hours, I can take more than one course during the semester and make up lost time."

Susan returns to the room and says, "I see you've met Brian and Mandy."

"Yes, he's interviewing us," says Mandy, pointing to my tape recorder.

"Oh that's right, Brian's in the day program" at E-School, says Susan. "That's not why he's here though—he missed his bus."

I reply hopefully, "I locked my keys in my car. If he's looking for something to do, maybe we could work something out."

Susan is quick to step in. "Well no, you have to be careful what you ask for," she says with a laugh. "The students are quick to... 'problem solve.' You might get unintended results."

But problem solving and getting results are exactly the business Susan Rogers is in. An outspoken advocate and recruiter for E-School, Susan's enthusiasm and passion for offering options to former dropouts is palpable. When pressed for details on how the traditional role of guidance counselor—one who counsels students who are already enrolled in school—changes as one works to bring dropouts back to school, Susan is forthright, "It's still a real simple formula of finding out kids' goals and needs, and then offering options to fulfill that. It's about helping kids take responsibility and getting them excited about taking control of their own future."

Susan explains that, from a counseling perspective, what's really important for the E-School system to work is not just that it gives returning students access to the curriculum and credits, but it attends to the needs of the whole child—providing social and emotional support. Often, this support may take the form of providing bus passes, helping to find employment, having food available, or even calling kids at home to see what would make the transition back to school easier.

"Kids want to be successful," says Susan. "Because a kid dropped out doesn't mean they don't want to be successful in school. A high school diploma is important to them and that doesn't change. So the joy for me is seeing the students who return get the opportunity to satisfy that need."

A typical Milwaukie High School class will start with approximately 400 students, yet by senior year that number may erode to well below 300. The E-School offers tremendous potential to re-enroll many of those kids, but first they must be reached and informed. Susan and the other counselors take a number of different tacks to locate these students and sell them on their options.

"We go after these kids," says Susan. "For instance someone will come back to get their GED and introduce me to their boyfriend and I'll say, 'Do you have your high school diploma?' and if not, I'll talk to them about E-School. There are a lot of once-removed connections we make out in the community.

"Generally we pursue kids we know who have dropped out but we're not averse to stopping kids on the street," she adds. "Getting out in the community, eating in the fast food restaurants—it's not hard finding them."

Although the E-School is computer-driven, the courses are not offered "online" nor are the students isolated from teachers. Teachers are present in the E-School laboratory and available for assistance at any time. Still, the temptation—or the fear—to replace flesh-and-blood teachers with computers is a very real stigma associated with programs such as E-School. As guidance counselor, another responsibility of Susan's is to be an informed advocate for the human element.

"As the technology is replicated, the loss of the human element is a risk. Because it's tempting to think, 'Let the computers do it,'" says Susan. "Teachers were initially concerned, 'Is this replacing me as an educator?' But we've learned, for this program to work, it's necessary to have the teachers on hand. The role of the teacher isn't lost; it's just changed for these students. It's more one-on-one. The teachers react to students as they are needed."

As computer-based learning promises to play an expanded role in education, the relationship between student and teacher needs to be reinforced, she says. Milwaukie High School teachers and students demonstrated the E-School program to other schools' administrators, some of whom felt they could implement it with minimal teacher involvement. That alarmed Milwaukie's E-School students.

"The students objected," says Susan. "They said, 'No, you don't understand. It's because we could raise our hands and get help that it worked.' They stressed that the technology is only a piece of it. It's wonderful that we can run 30 different courses at once, but without that human element standing by, it wouldn't be as successful."

Susan is quick to stress that in addition to the continued need for teachers to be present, the E-School needs to remain integral to the brick-and-mortar school itself. One of the initial concerns about housing the E-School within the actual high school building was that students would resist returning to a place where they had had difficulties in the first place. But it turned out that it wasn't the physical school itself that kept students away. It was the culture of the school that some students struggled with.

"Whether it's a time barrier, a learning-style barrier, or a lifestyle barrier, for some reason the traditional day school just doesn't work for all kids," says Susan. "I don't think E-School is going to replace traditional day school. Instead, I think it fills a gap for students who needed other options. To me the key is accessibility. E-School is just another item we can put on the menu."

The need to locate, counsel, and follow up with large numbers of dropouts; as well as advocating for and working on the success of the E-School; all the while remaining focused on the counseling needs of the regular day school students would put a strain on anyone's time. But Susan finds the experience empowering.

"It's not a burden in the sense of hopelessness or feeling overwhelmed by the need," says Susan. "I think it's energizing because I get excited about opportunity. I so believe in fresh starts and redemption and moving forward that I find it more invigorating than draining. I think if I was into 'rescuing' I'd feel burdened, but it's the difference between giving kids the skills to become stronger and self-sufficient versus just trying to make it better for them."

Additionally, Susan and her fellow counselors are always looking ahead. "How do we add electives?" she asks. "How do we help kids transition better? How do we collaborate more with the community college and prepare kids for the next step? How do we reach more kids? These things are always on my mind, yet they also energize me."

By now, Mandy and Brian have long since left. Susan's office may hold a certain welcoming appeal, but not after the bell rings and the school day ends. Down the hall, other students are just arriving for the after-school session at E-School laboratory. Susan asks if I want to visit the laboratory. I agree and she walks me down the hall to introduce me to the E-School facilitators. Before we part company she has some final thoughts on her role in this bold, new endeavor.

"Any successful program needs a balance of people—people who are very good at creating and operating systems and maintaining order and fighting obstacles. I'm probably more on the cheerleading side. Let's move ahead and make it start working for us."

In other words, it's about problem solving. And the biggest "unintended consequence" of it all has been the happiest surprise: 50 students—twice the number of last year—have come back to school and are filling the chairs in the little laboratory just down the hall.