Emerson High School, Oklahoma City Public Schools
2007 Oklahoma Medal for Excellence in Alternative Education
Emerson High School in Oklahoma City has been named the recipient of this year’s Medal for Excellence in Alternative Education. Known as a school of second chances for “recovered” and “would-be” drop-out students, Emerson High School is the only alternative program in Oklahoma maintaining stand-alone accreditation as a high school, said Director Debra Thomas.
Through two distinct programs, the school provides opportunity for adolescents who can not meet the academic and/or attendance requirements of traditional high schools, have special adjustment needs or who receive behavioral referrals. Emerson’s Metro Program serves students in grades 9 through 12, while the school’s Outreach Program provides additional services, such as childcare, medical care and parenting resources, to pregnant students and teen parents.
Emerson draws upon a variety of techniques and resources to help students succeed, including small class sizes, individualized instruction plans, life-skills training, counseling, mentoring and service-learning opportunities.
One strength of Emerson is its ability to serve as a “surrogate family” to its students, Thomas added. “Because these at-risk students have so many personal and survival needs which must be met to free their minds to learn, teachers in both Outreach and Metro must provide mentoring, nurturing and referral to community resources as the students attempt to build their own character for life at the same time they are being educated,” she said.