Abstract
The purpose of this study was to examine what strategies alternative learning centers utilize for student retention. A case study was used to learn about the ways one public school located in the Upper Midwest provided resources and developed relationships with students in an alternative learning center setting. Students attending alternative learning centers are typically high-risk high-need students who do not have many social supports in their educational settings. The participant in this study is a high-level administrator who has over 30 years of experience in the public school system, including participation in the creation of the modern alternative learning center in their area. The findings imply that positive school environments as well as respectful positive relationships are necessary in the retention and maintenance of students at alternative learning centers. Environmental as well as social factors prohibit the typical alternative learning center student from being successful in school. If these relationships and environmental factors are not met students do not typically stay in school.