Essential components of at-risk/dropout programs found in the literature compared with components found in selected at-risk programs in Illinois.

Sorry, the full text of this article is not available in Huskie Commons. Please click on the alternative location to access it. ; 115 p. ; The purpose of this study was to identify essential components of at-risk/dropout programs and compare them to the components found in existing programs in LUDA districts in Illinois. The 15 descriptors found in the literature provided the basis for clustering similar items into essential components.Questions covering each descriptor were developed for the questionnaire. Thirty-nine of the 43 LUDA school districts responded to the questionnaire. In addition, four programs were selected for an on-site interview.The findings revealed both similarities and differences of the components determined from the literature and the components in LUDA districts in Illinois. In addition, the following conclusions were drawn: (1) Literature in the area of at-risk/dropout programs supports the need for strong, well-organized programs for at-risk students; (2) Illinois LUDA school districts include essential components in their district programs; (3) the majority of school districts provide at-risk/dropout programs for the older individual rather than for the school age student; (4) the curriculum of at-risk/dropout programs in Illinois LUDA districts is not consistent with that suggested in the literature; and (5) Illinois LUDA districts identified additional components for at-risk/dropout programs not found in the literature.