Dan Henry was behind on his credits. Just a few weeks into his senior year at Maple Grove Senior High, a guidance counselor told him he was falling short of the required count. If he didn’t make up those credits, he wouldn’t be able to graduate. To remedy the situation, Henry applied to the Osseo Area Learning Center (OALC), an alternative high school that is part of District 279. There, he was able to make up lost credits and graduate on time. Today, Henry is employed by the district. For the past three years, he has worked as the district’s network support specialist, keeping the computers humming in well over 20 schools. For Henry, OALC was a key to his present success.

Thinking back on his year at OALC, he says, “I was able to take three English classes at a time,” which was an area of weakness for him. Teachers at OALC are able to teach ninth-grade course material, which allowed Henry to go back and make up credits he’d long missed. Plus, class sizes are smaller than average. Most OALC classrooms have an 18-to-1 student-teacher ratio compared to a more typical 36-to-1 ratio at the district’s three other high schools. “I really liked the smaller class sizes,” Henry says. “It gave me a chance to get to know my teachers. The more time my teachers were able to spend me with me, the more I felt like they were taking an interest in me. It made me want to do better.”

Steve Halverson understands that feeling. Halverson, a social studies teacher at the school, has found great fulfillment in his role there. “I really like working in a smaller environment. I get to see my students having success every day,” he says. “I get to know my students, their histories and their lives. I get to connect with them.”

Halverson has been a teacher at OALC since its inception. The school, which is located near the Northland Inn in Brooklyn Park, opened its doors in September 2000. Since then, the school has graduated (with diplomas awarded by Maple Grove Senior High, Osseo Senior High and Park Center Senior High) roughly 100 students throughout each year. In its early years, the school offered course work over a 13-hour day to students in grades 8-12. Now, the 6-hour day is more in line with other schools, and students are in grades 9-12. Evening programs, independent study and summer school classes are offered. The school also offers classes that help students prepare for the state-wide academic tests. Now, with all of its extended offerings, about 1,700 students pass through the school’s doors each year.

All of the students who attend OALC have one thing in common—they are behind in their credits. Their reasons vary. Some have a history of discipline problems. Some have attendance issues. Some are raising children of their own and juggling jobs, parenthood and school. For Halverson, though, each of these kids holds a place in his heart. “I’ve always been an advocate for at-risk kids. Special education students have advocates, but the kids who struggle day-to-day in the regular classroom with homework and testing don’t have anywhere to go,” he says. “These kids want to succeed. They have goals and plans for their lives, but they get beaten down and frustrated.”

“When our students come to us, they are usually feeling pretty bad,” says James Hill, principal of OALC. “We try to shift the focus away from what they haven’t done to what they can still do. We work hard to build a relationship with each student.”

Hill, who has led the school for five years, acknowledges the negative stereotypes people might have about what kind of kids end up at an alternative high school. He, however, brushes those labels aside. “We don’t really have a lot of behavior problems here,” he says. “We’ve gotten away from the mentality of treating these kids like delinquents. What we want is for these kids to graduate and move on to lifelong opportunities. That’s our target.”