Tennessee Official Pens First National Standards for Alternative Education

NASHVILLE – For the first time, the nation has a blueprint of what research shows constitutes an effective and high-quality alternative education program.  Alternative programs provide options to suspension, expulsion, and dropping out of school so that students may continue their education, be more likely to graduate from high school, and become productive citizens. While alternative education is used nationwide, the standards authored by Tennessee’s Alternative Education Coordinator James Vince Witty comprise the first national framework for high-quality programs.

“Tennessee went through the process of developing quality standards for its alternative education programs but without the guidance of a national model,” Education Commissioner Timothy Webb said. “These standards draw on years of research and experience of what works and what doesn’t in terms of helping at-risk students succeed in school.”

The National Alternative Education Association adopted the standards last week as outlined in Witty’s Exemplary Practices in Alternative Education: Indicators of Quality Programming. The paper’s purpose is to help ensure alternative programs serve students accordingly, inform policymakers of what good alternative education looks like, and provide a means of building and evaluating existing programs. During the same Board meeting, Witty was elected to the position of Vice-President of the NAEA.

Two other Department officials also served as editors for the exemplary practices document. James Herman, Reading First Director, and Dr. Marla Smith, Education Consultant, helped edit the final product.

“The hope, of course, is to raise the quality of alternative education programs so more students stay in school, graduate, and have the chance at a better life,” Mike Herrmann, Tennessee Executive Director of School Safety and Learning Support said. “James’ work highlights what works so policymakers and educators can give students a real opportunity to learn in a non-traditional setting.”

The NAEA will begin identifying and recognizing programs that exemplify these standards over the course of the next year. The full document can be viewed online at
http://state.tn.us/education/learningsupport/alted/index.shtml.

For more information, contact Amanda Maynord Anderson at (615) 532-7817 or Amanda.Anderson@state.tn.us.               ###