1. Whatever It Takes: How Twelve Communities Are Reconnecting Out-of-School Youth In cooperation with Council of the Great City Schools National Association of Secondary School Principals National Conference of State Legislatures National League of Cities National School Boards Association

2. Central Question What can be done to reconnect our young people to opportunities for building useful lives in work, family, and citizenship?

3. Case Studies of Communities A sampling, illustrating various modes of reconnecting out-of-school youth to education, employment, and civic participation A practical resource Not a survey

4. 12 Communities Austin, Texas Baltimore, Maryland Camden, New Jersey Jefferson County (Louisville), Kentucky Milwaukee, Wisconsin Montgomery County (Dayton), Ohio Oakland, California Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Pima County (Tucson), Arizona Portland, Oregon Salt Lake City, Utah Trenton, New Jersey

5. National Program Models Job Corps Jobs for Americas Graduates National Guard Youth ChalleNGe Opportunities Industrialization Centers YouthBuild Youth Service and Conservation Corps Youth Opportunity Grant Program

6. Dropout Recovery Efforts Are Varied Exist at the program, district, city, county, state, and national level Assist with GED preparation, high school and associates degree completion, and employment preparation Offered by school districts, CBOs, community colleges, and private companies Include actual programs, as well as policy initiatives encouraging such programming

7. Program Characteristics Open-Entry/Open-Exit Flexible Scheduling and Year-round Learning Teachers As Coaches, Facilitators and Crew Leaders Real-World, Career-Oriented Curricula

8. Program Characteristics Opportunities for Employment Clear Codes of Conduct with Consistent Enforcement Extensive Support Services A Portfolio of Options for a Varied Group

9. Successful Efforts In Portland, OR, Portland Community College is offering former OSY the opportunity to complete high school and an associates degree or significant college credit. In Montgomery County, OH, The Out-of-School Youth Initiative has reduced the dropout rate dramatically by targeting programming to 16-24 year-olds without a high school diploma. In Philadelphia, the Reintegration Initiative puts programs and supports in place to prevent young people exiting the juvenile justice system from reoffending. YouthBuild programs across the country are helping young people obtain a GED or high school diploma while learning work skills by building affordable housing.

10. The varied programs and policies described in this report are possible for any community to implement. The nation has more than enough models and know-how to be able to reclaim Americas dropouts.

11. The varied programs and policies described in this report are possible for any community to implement. The nation has more than enough models and know-how to be able to reclaim many more of Americas dropouts.