When young people are given sound reasons to think positively about their future, their attitude toward school changes, and they begin to plan for the long-term, often for the first time in their lives. Alternative Secondary Schools Career Choices is already a recognized curriculum for career exploration in secondary schools. Over 3,500 high schools have used the texts with great success, particularly for at-risk students. Career Choices offers a non-traditional structure built on the concept of relevant and interactive learning. This approach is far more appealing to at-risk youth or to an alternative school setting than the lecture format.
Academic credit offers program managers a very real non-monetary incentive for youth.
Summer Employment Opportunities Career Choices has proven its value and success during the past seven years as an academic enrichment component for summer youth. It has three main advantages over other curricula. It can be implemented effectively in classroom settings or on job sites in as little as 30 hours but can be expanded to as many as 90 hours. It offers an opportunity to link the summer program to year-round activities via the young person's personalized education and career plan. Before young people can successfully participate in paid work experience, job shadowing or internships, they must develop basic work maturity skills.