Providing an alternative

Over the past five school years, the number of Naperville North High School students enrolled in the Alternative Learning Opportunities Program (ALOP) is higher than the number of Naperville Central students enrolled in the same program. Last school year, NNHS sent 41 more students than NCHS, according to District 203 data.

The North Star asked several sources what the reason is for the disparity between the two schools, but there was no consensus on a definite cause for the disparity.

According to Bob Ross, District 203 assistant superintendent of secondary education, the disparity between the two schools is simply because the schools handle individual instances based on the students and the situations.

“On a case-by-case basis, we look at the situation, identify the needs of students and come up with a plan to address and best meet their needs,” Ross said.

The ALOP offers multiple alternative learning settings to District 203 students. According to Lisa Xagas, District 203 director of student services, the two most common are the Naperville Bridge School and Ombudsman.

These alternative programs are for students who benefit more from a non-traditional learning setting, Ross said.

“Our traditional setting, schools like Naperville North and Washington Junior High, meet the needs of most of our students—nearly all of them—but sometimes we identify a need that has to be met a different way, and that’s why we use our alternative settings,” Ross said.

Ombudsman is a three-hour per day, computer-based program that is used when a student needs credit recovery, Xagas said. The Naperville Bridge School uses the same curriculum as NNHS and NCHS. It is for students who need a different level of support than what is offered in a traditional school settings.

According to David Figlio, Institute for Policy Research director and professor of Education, Social Policy and Economics at Northwestern University, there are both advantages and disadvantages with alternative programs.

“Those who think these programs are all good are overly optimistic, and those who think these programs are all bad are overly pessimistic,” Figlio said.

According to Figlio, there are definite benefits when a student is placed correctly in an alternative learning program, but problems can arise if a placement is made incorrectly.

When a student is placed in an alternative setting, what is expected of the students can change, Figlio said.

“Students tend to live up or live down to the expectations that are set for them in these environments,” Figlio said.

NNHS dean Jeffrey DiOrio believes that the benefits of these programs outweigh any potential downfalls.

“I think it’s a win any time you can create an educational environment that meets the needs of your kids. We don’t have just one learning environment for all 3,000 kids,” DiOrio said. “In other places, one size fits all and if you don’t fit, you’re going to struggle.”

Figlio emphasized that the decision to place a student in an alternative setting should not be taken lightly.

“The danger with these programs is that if a student is misaligned, even if the placement may have been made with good intentions, it becomes difficult for a student to get out of the program,” Figlio said.

According to DiOrio, District 203 does everything it can to make sure an alternative placement is what is best for the student.

“The educational placement of all of our kids is something we don’t take lightly, so we meet as a team to discuss the pros and cons and involve parents and students so that we can make the best choice possible,” DiOrio said.

At NNHS, decisions whether to send a student to an off-campus facility depend on the specific situation, NNHS principal Kevin Pobst said.

“It could be a decision by a student services problem-solving team, a special education IEP (Individualized Education Program) process, disciplinary situations, a decision made by the board of education at our recommendation, or [it could be] voluntary,” Pobst said.

Every student at NNHS is assigned to one of four problem-solving teams. These are made up of a dean, social worker, psychologist, nurse and two or three guidance counselors. These teams handle any issues that may arise with students, Pobst said.

According to Pobst, in the case of a student who has committed an expellable action, however, the problem-solving team is consulted, but the ultimate decision is made by the deans, the principal and the assistant superintendent for secondary education.

“We try not to expel here. What we do is we place students alternatively in lieu of expulsion,” Pobst said.

The problem-solving teams work together to find solutions to best help students, according to DiOrio.

“There’s a list of academic interventions that we try with students. Some of those include SOS (Supervised Open Study), tutoring, meeting with counselors and altering their schedules,” DiOrio said. “If we don’t get success with those interventions, we then try an alternative learning setting.”

DiOrio believes an increasing number of students are sent to alternative programs because of their need for a smaller classroom environment and more attention to their social and emotional well-being.

“At the Naperville Bridge School, they offer things such as music and art therapy which benefit kids with social emotional needs that we just don’t service here at North,” DiOrio said.

According to Ross, District 203 is continuously working on their alternative programs to ensure they’re the best they can be.

“I think it’s fair to say that we continue to improve those programs in the same way we continue to improve our traditional school setting,” Ross said. “We review data, identify areas that we can improve, and we come up with plans to try to improve them. That is true for all twenty-two of our schools in District 203, and it’s true for our alternative settings as well.”