City high school offers alternative

Two alternative education programs at Watertown High School aim to give students opportunities to get their diploma outside a traditional classroom setting.

"Some kids have fallen through the cracks and feel that no one cares about them," said Fredric J. Sovie, coordinator of the Project Success program at Watertown High School. "But I want them to know that someone is trying to help them."

Project Success, a program that provides an alternative for ninth- and 10th-grade students who are at risk of dropping out of school, was implemented in the 2008-09 school year.

As part of Project Success, group counseling takes place during the homeroom period. Called "Connections," it is meant to raise students' self-esteem and to discuss their problems.

"Some of the kids have really bonded with each other. They're friends now," Mr. Sovie said.

The students in the program start their day during the high school's second period, and stay 45 minutes longer than other students so they have more time to "wake up" before academic classes start, Mr. Sovie said.

More of the students have been getting to school on time, he said.

Students attend regular classes during the middle of the school day, and meet at the end of the day for social studies and math classes that are solely for Project Success students. If there are behavior issues with other teachers, the students will usually be sent to Mr. Sovie to talk before a situation escalates. There has been a decrease in the number of referrals written for most of the students in the program since it started, Mr. Sovie said.

There were 11 students in the program last year. This year, there are 20 students, 10 each from ninth and 10th grades. The 10th-graders are the same students who started in the program last year, he said.

"These kids have really matured in a year," Mr. Sovie said. "Some of them have told me that if it weren't for this, they would have failed a class that they passed."

Watertown High School will also implement a new credit-recovery program this month to help students who are falling behind make up the credits they need to graduate. The target population is seniors who could graduate in June or August, after completing credits in summer school, and students who transfer into the high school who were enrolled in a credit-recovery program at their last school, Watertown High School Principal Stephen J. Todd said.

The school will use PLATO Learning, a computer program that is linked with state learning standards, Assistant Superintendent Marilyn H. Trainor said.

Students take a qualifying test when they begin the program, which will determine how many modules they must complete in order to make up missing credits. Some of the projects students will do may differ from what they would have done in another classroom, but the core concepts will be the same, Ms. Trainor said.

"As a district, we continue to look for ways to help students who are falling behind," Ms. Trainor said. "Students can make up credits by taking a course over or attending summer school, but we also want something that will provide increased flexibility."