June 1994 — Features

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CARAS: A School-Based, Case Management System for At-Risk Students

by EDUARDO J. ARMIJO, Evaluation Coordinator JOSEPH J. STOWITSCHEK, Research Professor ALBERT J. SMITH, C-STARS Director COLENE M. McKEE, Scientific Programmer KAREN J. SOLHEIM, Research Consultant and RICHARD D. PHILLIPS, Research Consultant Center for the Study and Teaching of At-Risk Students (C-STARS) University of Washington Seattle, Wash. Technological applications in education often fail to keep pace with the changing demands of the student body. Regardless of the direct applications of computers in instruction, an increasing number of students are recognized as being at risk of failing school. Indeed, a recent report by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) shows that 12.5% of persons ages 16 through 24 are high school dropouts.1 While many of the individuals cited in this report are younger students at risk for strictly academic reasons, many more are at risk because of family-related problems. Seeking different approaches to address both school- and family-related factors, educators have begun to turn to integrated service options, involving professionals in many disciplines. As more of these cross-disciplinary efforts are made with both students and their families, more effective methods of managing cases and coordinating school-based service delivery have become increasingly necessary.
Recognizing this need, the Center for the Study and Teaching of At-Risk Students (C-STARS) at the University of Washington, in conjunction with the Washington State Migrant Council, developed a software application that allows users to efficiently manage the cases of students at risk of dropping out of school. Known as the Computer-Assisted Risk Accountability System (CARAS), this software is being pilot-tested in several districts across the state of Washington.

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