AHSI helped increase tenfold the number of high quality alternative schools and programs engaging struggling students and out-of-school youth between 2003 and 2009. On a considerably wider scale, however, a dropout crisis persists in the U.S. among a majority of young people, particularly low-income African American and Latino youth in our largest cities. President Obama and other leaders have joined education advocates in challenging and engaging our school systems to ensure that all young people in this country earn a high school diploma and graduate ready to lead productive lives.

It is within this context that AHSI intends to lead – through innovation and intentional collaboration – a national response to the imperative that our country educate all youth. AHSI aspires to assist large and medium-sized cities in the U.S. and their states in developing a diverse range of high quality pathways to graduation as part of their secondary school portfolios. AHSI will use its new business model to scale-up results achieved by this highly regarded network of school developers. AHSI will work with interested partners to develop pathways to graduation, college, and careers to help ensure that a greater number of this nation’s underserved young people graduate high school prepared for promising futures.

AHSI PLACE-BASED PARTNERSHIPS
AHSI is working with cities, school districts, and community-wide partners to expand the number of high quality pathways to graduation through AHSI Place-based Partnerships in Indianapolis, IN; Nashville, TN; and Newark, NJ. The National League of Cities Institute for Youth, Education, and Families facilitates these efforts. AHSI welcomes the opportunity to form new Partnerships in other localities.
For more information visit the AHSI Partnerships page.

SCHOOL DISTRICT, STATE EDUCATION AGENCY, AND OTHER PARTNERSHIPS
AHSI will assist large and medium-sized cities in the U.S. and their SEAs in developing and integrating high quality alternatives as part of their secondary school portfolios. Cities of this size often overlap with or include multiple school districts. These cities generally have sufficient capacity to offer a range of pathways to graduation that include diverse high school models, and they are well-positioned to scale-up these efforts with partners locally and statewide for systemic change.

While AHSI will focus its energy in this way, we welcome inquiries from any interested locality, including rural communities, because the network is composed of organizations with expertise that can be tapped in these locales as well.

AHSI offers a fee-based service model to fulfill a scope of work jointly developed with the prospective client. AHSI anticipates working closely with interested cities, school districts, State Education Agencies, and other partners to help assess the status of secondary school options and alternatives; identify effective local, state, and regional high school models; and propose a range of high quality school designs that would expand pathways to graduation.

FEDERAL PROGRAM OPPORTUNITIES
AHSI is actively contributing to federal efforts to reduce this nation’s dropout rate and increase high school graduation and college completion rates. Under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, opportunities to work with SEAs and Local Education Agencies (LEAs) are emerging. AHSI is capable of supporting a State’s Race to the Top strategy. AHSI is also gearing up for the Investing in Innovation Fund. AHSI is well positioned to contribute to other public programs that create opportunities for expanding high quality pathways to graduation and post-high school success.

INVITE US to work with your community, city, or state. Please contact us.

Talmira Hill,
AHSI Director
Phone: (781) 485-9979
Email: talmira.ahsi@gmail.com

Lauren Smock-Randall
AHSI Network Support Coordinator
Phone: (401) 752-3430
Email: lsmock-randall@bigpicturelearning.org