Partnership Principal Dan Tenuta

     The clear message that Dan Tenuta and his teaching staff of 59 deliver to students at Kenosha’s (WI) Reuther Center High School is, “We like you.”

The majority of young people coming to Reuther, where Tenuta has been principal for eight years, have been turned off.

“Our job is to tear down the wall of resistance with our students,” he said. “Many haven’t been successful in previous learning situations and feel as if they’ve been cast off by the system.”

But with a belief in teaching personal responsibility, involvement of parents, and providing choices that will meet the needs of each student, Reuther, the largest alternative school in the United States, has a graduation rate of close to 90 percent. Many of the grads are the first in their family to earn a high school diploma, and 85 percent of the student body meets the Wisconsin definition of at-risk students.

Reuther focuses on a schools within a school approach for the 750 young people, offering seven specialized programs, some of which have received national and international acclaim.

“All of our programs are designed to meet the needs of our students,” explains Tenuta.

The school’s Expeditionary Learning Outward Bound Program has been named a national demonstration site for this type of education and attracted visiting educators from throughout the world.

“We have Expeditionary Learning as a primary instructional method for our school,” explained Tenuta. “Expeditionary Learning is a New American Schools design that is based upon Outward Bound, an adventure and service-based education program founded by Kurt Hahn. In these schools, students learn to take responsibility to achieve their personal best.”

It is based on 10 design principles and five core practice benchmarks. Design principles include “the responsibility of learning, success and failure, collaboration and competition, the natural world, and empathy and caring.”

The core practice benchmarks describe Expeditionary Learning in practice: what teachers, students, school leaders, families, and other partners do in fully implemented Expeditionary Learning schools. The five core practices--learning expeditions, active pedagogy, school culture and character, leadership and school improvement, and structures--work in concert and support one another to promote high achievement through active learning, character growth, and teamwork.

Last April Reuther High, an 81-year-old building in downtown Kenosha, hosted a national conference on Expeditionary Schools in recognition of the success its students have experienced.

Other programs include Accelerated Independent Study/ Transition (AIS), Student Age Parent Program and Infant Lab (SAPAR/ Infant Lab)), Credit Recovery, Reuther Education At-Large (REAL), Leading Individuals to Choose Success (LINCS), and Bridges.

“Our philosophy is that the personal development of students is as important as their educational growth and occupational readiness,” Tenuta indicated. “We try to operate in an environment of cooperation and mutual respect to help young people develop self-esteem, sensitivity, and respect for others.”

The various options students have also are geared to give them the chance to recover from previous difficulties.

For example, in the nationally-recognized AIS program, students 16 years-old and older who are credit deficient can work independently in day and evening classes to earn credit quickly. They receive credit as soon as they demonstrate mastery of the content.

The Credit Recovery Program targets ninth graders who didn’t attain enough credits to reach sophomore status. In this accelerated program students are challenged to earn two credits in English, social studies, mathematics, and science. There is also the expectation of parental involvement.

The REAL Program is an alternative work study plan for students in danger of not graduating on time. It is designed to replicate a 40-work week where students who do not demonstrate work skills such as being on time can be “fired.” They spend half a day on job site rotations and half working in the core subjects of English, social studies, science, and mathematics.

Further information on the variety of learning opportunities at Reuther can be found on the Kenosha Unified School District Web site, www.kusd.edu.

Tenuta views The Principals’ Partnership is a source for ideas that work for school leaders striving to provide new and successful program for their students.

The Partnership is a great network and a real chance to grow professionally. The Institute is the best national conference I’ve experienced with high quality speakers and a relaxed atmosphere. It really reaffirms what we are doing.”

Tenuta can be contacted at [email protected].

 
Past Focus Principals:

Focus- Charlesetta Deason
Focus- Rene Posey
Focus- Stuart Baker
Focus- Paul Smith
Focus- Christie Gestvang
Focus- John A. Butterfield
Focus- Janie Hill Hatton
Focus- Steve Warmack
Focus-Glen Clark
Focus- William Dunn
Focus - Richard Pemberton
Focus - Dr. Anthony Spivey
Focus - John Weigel