Design, Sites, and Data Sources
The study involved synthesizing information from 16 case studies. The purpose of the effort was to describe and analyze the school-to-work programs, rather than to measure their impacts.
The 16 programs were located in 15 communities in 12 states. These communities were: Little Rock, Arkansas; Los Angeles, California; Oakland, California; Fort Collins, Colorado; Wayne Township (Indianapolis), Indiana; Baltimore, Maryland; Cambridge, Massachusetts; Tulsa, Oklahoma; Central Point (Medford), Oregon; Portland, Oregon; Dauphin County (Harrisburg), Pennsylvania; Pickens County (Easley), South Carolina; Socorro, Texas (near El Paso); Fox Cities (Appleton), Wisconsin; and West Bend, Wisconsin.
To conduct the case studies, the researchers interviewed program directors, employers, school administrators, teachers, students, and leaders of other participating organizations. Discussions with focus groups of students and parents in two programs provided information about their perspectives.