1 High Schools and Adolescents With Disabilities: Challenges at Every Turn

Abstract

June 6, 2005, was a very special day for Jason Warner. It was also a real highlight for his parents. At 7:30 that evening, Jason joined 289 of his classmates to receive his high school diploma from Woodland High School. Receiving a standard high school diploma was not something that happened by accident or by luck—it was an event that took place largely because of some very deliberate decisions and commitments that had been made by key administrators and teachers in Jason’s district several years earlier. While going through the North Central Accreditation process in 1995, school leaders in Jason’s district were alarmed to learn how low the graduation rate was for high school students with disabilities. A few years later, when statewide assess-ments were implemented and requirements added for schools to meet adequate yearly progress (AYP) standards for all students as a result of the No Child Left 1 01-Deshler-4745.qxd 9/23/2005 3:32 PM Page 1 Behind (NCLB) Act, school leaders knew that significant steps would have to be