ACES program graduates 20 students

GREENVILLE – Council on Rural Services is honored to congratulate the twenty students that graduated from the Achievement Center for Educational Success (ACES) program and their local school districts this year. An ACES graduation event was held at the end of May with all the student’s family and friends in attendance, they were also involved in graduation ceremonies and received their actual diplomas from their home school.

ACES is an alternative education program for high school students in Darke County that offers students smaller classes, more direct instruction and an environment where the individual student “matters”. We believe in the approach of “different choices for students that need a different educational option” by matching with each student’s ability and learning style.

“This year we had 46 students enrolled in ACES and we are proud to have 20 teens graduating and receiving their diplomas from their home schools of Arcanum-Butler, Ansonia, Franklin Monroe, Mississinawa Valley, Newton, Tri-Village, and Versailles. The work we do with these school districts and the Darke County Education Service Center means these students get that second chance for positive change” said Jeff Vaughn, program coordinator. Many students come to ACES with few credits and low attendance rates; by changing an approach to learning we can also help the students change their learning achievements.

In addition to the 20 students that are graduating at ACES, we have 25 underclassmen that advanced a grade level and all the students have great achievements.

10 students completed 8 or more credits each during the school year with all the students achieving a total of 273.25 credits overall attendance by the student body was 90%, with one student attending 100% during whole year

6 of the graduating students have full time jobs at the time of graduation

72% of the non-IEP students already passed their Ohio Graduation Tests (OGT) with 100% passing on the reading and writing sections

A fine arts class taught by Christina Cox brought out creative expressionism in the curriculum by the 14 students participating.

This has been the 14th year that ACES has worked with long-term students. During that time there has been 434 students attend at least part of a year in the ACES program; within that number there has been 138 seniors that the program helped earn their diplomas.

Coursework at ACES is provided in an off-school campus classroom setting under the guidance of a certified teacher Deron Johns, the program coordinator Jeff Vaughn, and trained aides/tutors Marcia Schlechty and Ruth Howell (a retired teacher). The program also had an invaluable volunteer, Dawn McCoy that worked tirelessly all year to help in many roles.

In addition to teaching, the program provides a support system for the students; whether it’s dealing with transportation, childcare, or substance abuse issues - whatever it is - ACES is here for them. This year the some of the students requested extra parenting activities to learn more to being better parents. ACES works to build relationships and trust with the students in order to fulfill the mission of helping all the students succeed in school, which in turn helps them succeed in life.

For more information about the ACES program call Jeff Vaughn, program coordinator at 937-548-8002 or check the web site at www.councilonruralservices.org. The Achievement Center for Education Success (ACES) and Gateway Youth are programs of Council on Rural Services … programs for innovative learning.