AHSI organizations target and effectively engage young people who are extremely resilient but considered “on the bottom” academically, socially, and economically. Despite these challenges, young people attending AHSI schools and programs are removing themselves from a trajectory leading toward academic failure and are fulfilling their goals and aspirations. AHSI students are graduating with high school diplomas and making successful transitions to college and careers.

AHSI’s first national conference will highlight results based on student attainment of academic and other proficiencies. By focusing on evidence of success among their students beyond high school, AHSI organizations will create a forum for K-12 and college educators, policy makers, and representatives of community-wide agencies, youth development, and workforce development organizations interested in educating all youth. Participants will discover new strategies, exchange best practices, make connections with schools and postsecondary institutions, and explore opportunities for improving policy and practice. Sessions will be tailored to meet the needs of educators, youth professionals, and policy makers implementing middle and high school innovations, including teams of educators funded under the U.S. Department of Education’s Race to the Top and Investing in Innovation Fund programs.

Conference strands will assist attendees in cultivating supports for students in middle and high school that promote college and career readiness, access, and post-high school success. Strategies include (a) college readiness — preparing students as early as the middle school years for completing high school and continuing to postsecondary success; (b) college access — supporting successful transitions from high school to college and careers, including student academics, financial aid, and related supports, as well as coordinating efforts with 2- and 4-year colleges and universities, certification programs, and with career options; and (c) continuing to support graduates as they pursue post-high school pathways. Sessions will present academic and other school-based interventions, strategies for collaboration with community-wide agencies for non-academic supports, as well as capacity building for longitudinal data and evaluation systems and other systemic elements for achieving the highest possible results.

The AHSI National Conference is scheduled to take place in early February 2011. Please continue to check back for more details as they come available!