| The problem of students dropping out of school continues today in schools and districts across the nation, particularly for students whose needs are not being met in regular school settings. Therefore, the development of standards-based systems in alternative learning environments requires funding and resources that match or exceed those of traditional schools. It is no longer sufficient to merely focus on equitable inputs, as is the case with the implementation of the weighted student formula. Rather, we must begin analyzing how resources are used so that we may provide educational programming that produces adequate outputs for all students.;The purpose of the study was to compare the combined impacts of the weighted student formula and the state's recent budget reductions on adequacy levels, student characteristics, student performance, and instructional programming in public schools. The study compared two high school sites, including a district-administered alternative learning environment (ALE) and a regular high school, both of which served struggling students in grades 9–12 who were at risk of school failure and of potentially dropping out of school. The study was designed as a mixed-method case study that examined data, from interviews, district records, and school documents, using adequacy frameworks including the Evidence-Based Model (Odden & Picus, 2008) and the 10 Strategies Framework for Doubling Student Performance (Odden, 2009). Although the study was limited by the scope and sample size of the study, findings showed that personnel resource levels largely remained the same for at-risk programs between school years 2010–2011 and 2011–2012. However, staffing levels were consistently less than the adequacy levels recommended by the Evidence-Based Model. Despite inadequate resources, schools continued to implement instructional programming that reinforced the development of the basic skills students needed to achieve standards and graduate with a diploma. The implementation of programming at the sites also promoted adult learning and built leadership capacity through professional collaboration and analysis of student performance data. Although graduation and dropout rates were not considered proxies for student learning, they provided evidence that schools were fulfilling the purpose for which they were developed—to help students persist toward graduation.;The study concluded that educational leaders were doing everything within their power to stabilize resources for struggling students, amid shrinking budgets and funding reallocations of the weighted student formula, by redirecting resources to programs for at-risk students and lobbying for staff positions at the legislature. Furthermore, the fact that these programs produced positive results in spite of inadequate resources was a testament to the commitment and hard work of teachers and staff at each site. Notably, positive gains cannot be expected by merely reallocating inadequate funding. Therefore, findings from the study are important for multiple stakeholders to promote ongoing evaluation using adequacy frameworks to ensure that schools and districts receive the adequate funding and resources necessary to help all students meet rigorous academic standards. |
