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Click Here 42 °F Forecast | Road Cams Thursday, February 26, 2004 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find a Rental Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Email Story to a Friend January 22, 2004 County schools reduce number of dropouts By JONEL ALECCIA Mail Tribune Echoing — and exceeding — a statewide trend, Jackson County’s high school dropout rates declined last year, falling substantially in several cases. About 400 of the county’s 9,500 high school students quit classes in 2002-2003, posting a one-year dropout rate of 4.3 percent, down from 6.9 percent, according to figures from the Oregon Education Department. That’s lower than the statewide rate of 4.4 percent, which was down from 4.9 percent the previous year. It’s the lowest state dropout rate since Oregon began keeping records in 1991. Educators across the county said they’ve worked hard to keep students engaged in school through individual intervention and classroom innovations. "It’s about trying to improve the community for students, making programs more relevant and trying to connect students at risk with someone who cares," said Phil Long, curriculum director for the Medford School District. Advertisement Overall, the Medford district’s dropout rate fell to 3.7 percent last year, down from 7.9 percent. Students typically leave school for reasons that include lack of parental support for education, being too far behind in credits to catch up, and working more than 15 hours a week, a state report indicated. One dramatic local decrease was in Butte Falls, where the dropout rate fell from 7.8 percent to 2.4 percent in 2002-2003. Superintendent Steve Pine said teachers and administrators worked hard to redirect students in danger of dropping out. "We touted the advantages of staying in some kind of program and it worked," he said. Prospect High School posted the county’s highest dropout rate, 7.6 percent. It was the only school in the county where the dropout rate rose, up from 5.3 percent in 2001-2002. Medford’s two large public high schools saw significant dropout decreases, partly because of the creation of a new alternative high school. South Medford High School’s dropout rate fell to 1.9 percent in 2002-2003, down from 8.9 percent the previous year. North Medford High School’s rate was 2.7 percent last year, down from 7.0 percent. Those figures were put into perspective by a 22.2 percent dropout rate at the Medford Opportunity High School. Created in 2002, the 300-student alternative school meets mostly at nights on the two high school campuses. It was aimed partly at improving the district’s performance on Oregon Report Card ratings, officials said. "We realized that our two high schools got hammered on the student behavior rating and that had to do with the dropout rate," Long said. "It was communicating something that wasn’t accurate." Among state alternative schools, Medford’s holds its own. Dropout rates for those schools ranged from a high of 40.7 percent to a low of 4.2 percent. South Medford High School’s rate of 1.9 percent is among the lowest in the state for large schools. Assistant Principal Kevin Campbell expressed surprise at the positive rate, but said years of effort to reach all students appear to be paying off. "We came here with a mission six years ago: to increase graduation rates, to decrease dropout rates and to make school a place where kids want to be," he said. Even Eagle Point High School, forced by fire to adopt an alternative schedule last year, posted a dropout decline from 7.2 percent to 5.2 percent. Principal Mari Brabbin said that that reflected efforts to intervene early and to direct students to other options. "And, they only went to school 5.5 hours a day," she said. "It did make a difference." Reach reporter JoNel Aleccia at 776-4465, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2004 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback 3 WEEKS FREE! ADVERTISERS A D V E R T I S E R S RESOURCES Oregon Road Conditions & Cams SPECIAL SECTIONS Auto Finder Job Finder Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Since We Asked Food for Thought Wellness Connection Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? Volunteer Opportunities Prime Times