High School Attendance
“A Community Partnership of the Caring Communities Initiative”
Butler County Community Resource Council
Core Result: Children succeeding in school
Benchmark: Graduation Rate
February 2002 
Objective
To increase the rate for persistence to graduation in the Poplar Bluff School District from 70.3% in 1998 to 80% by 2003
To increase the rate for persistence to graduation in the Neelyville School District from 79.4% in 1998 to 85% by 2003
To increase the rate for persistence to graduation in the Twin Rivers School District from 71.3% in 1998 to 85% by 2003
Strategies
What Worked?
A+ Schools
The A+ School program insures that student course choices are matched to a student career plan. Students completing all A+ program requirements (including attendance and GPA goals) receive junior college tuition for 2 years. The program improves persistence to graduation by making courses more relevant to students’ future plans and by providing students with hope for a post-secondary education.
Alternative Schools
The goal of an Alternative School is to provide a comprehensive program to educate high school students who exhibit violent, disruptive or abusive behavior in the traditional school setting. Alternative Schools have allowed some students to graduate who otherwise would have dropped out.
School to Careers
The School to Careers program pulls together the activities of area educational institutions, private business and industry, and government agencies in an attempt to improve the graduation rate, prepare students for the work place, and provide a smooth transition from high school to work. The program integrates opportunities for career awareness and exploration throughout the high school curriculum.
Results
Graduation rates have increased significantly in all three school districts in Butler County.
From 1998 to 2000, Butler County moved from 89th to 60th in the Kids Count rankings of county annual high school drop out rates.
Between 1998 and 2001, the three school districts in Butler County improved the persistence to graduation rate by an average of 6.2 percentage points compared to a Missouri average improvement of 3.6 percentage points.
Funding/Return on Investment
In FY01, Caring Communities funds were used to strategically enhance school district programs. The addition of Caring Communities dollars ($16,500) to provide key program supplements, identified by the Partnership assessment process, increased the effectiveness of existing sustainable programs receiving $334,041.00 in other funding. In FY02, these programs were sustained without any Caring Communities funds.
