Huntley mulling alternative school for struggling students

Huntley schools officials are considering creating an off-site alternative school for at-risk students who need extra academic and social or emotional support.

Huntley Community School District 158, with roughly 9,400 students, already offers a variety of interventions for students struggling with earning credits to move to the next grade level or graduate, poor attendance, behavioral and disciplinary issues, and for whom the traditional high school model is not working.

Yet, those interventions are not intensive enough to support the needs of some middle and high school students who are slipping through the cracks, said Danyce Letkewicz, Huntley High School associate principal for student services.

"The kids that are being missed right now are the ones with the social/emotional issues that are affecting their academic success," said Letkewicz, adding that officials want to get them help before these students get expelled. "Right now, there are 53 students that we have that meet the criteria that we set out. They are not in any alternative setting at this point."

District leaders discussed the alternative school idea several years ago, but decided to go with the McHenry County Regional Office of Education's Regional Safe Schools Program, which was free then.

However, districts now must pay for enrolling students in the county's alternative school program, which costs more than what it would take to educate the students traditionally, officials said.

District 158 also loses the per-pupil general state aid allowance for those students, District 158 Superintendent John Burkey told the school board at a recent meeting.

Officials estimate it would cost the district roughly $400,000 to run the alternative school program in-house - including the cost of hiring an administrator, five teachers, a social worker, a counselor, a jobs coach and two support personnel.

Transportation, training, and rental fees for a facility that is yet to be identified would be additional.

Typically, roughly 10 District 158 students who have been expelled or suspended for various reasons are enrolled in the county's alternative school program yearly. This year, that number dropped to two as expulsions have declined.

District parents have objected to using the county program because they are unsure whether it is the right setting for their children. Those students would be eligible to be brought in-house, Letkewicz said.

The program also would serve students who have dropped out or withdrawn to study online or through a correspondence high school.

Classes would be smaller and shorter than in the traditional school setting and include alternative teaching methods. Students would be required to take a job skills class and hold a part-time job while enrolled in the program. Those students who were expelled for drug-related offenses would be subject to random drug screens at the district's expense.

District 158 has consulted with neighboring school districts that have alternative school programs.

"We definitely are reaching out to area schools to kind of learn from them and how they have set it up," Letkewicz said. "Everyone has a different focus. That's where we really want to customize it for our students."