Growing Pains

By Lynn Olson

Piscataquis Community High School sits in a rural area of northwestern Maine populated by farmers and working-class families. In 1991, the academic performance of its 330 students placed the school in the bottom 20 percent of schools in the state. "And that was fairly reflective of community expectations," says Principal Norman Higgins. "No one was shocked. No one was upset. That's the way it had always been."

Then the school decided to get serious. With the help of a $571,000 grant from the RJR Nabisco Foundation, it set to work. It eliminated its separate tracks for college-bound and non-college-bound students and replaced them with a core curriculum for everyone. It abandoned the traditional seven-period day so students could take two 85-minute classes in the morning and two in the afternoon. It gave away students' desks and replaced them with large tables where students could work collectively. It trained staff members in how to use technology and new forms of instruction.

The results have been immediate and dramatic. Last year, the school ranked 12th in the state on Maine's statewide achievement test. This year, it ranked 18th out of 127 schools. College-acceptance rates have soared, from about 35 percent in 1991 to above 70 percent today. Meanwhile, the dropout rate has fallen like a rock, from 4.5 percent to 1.3 percent. You'd think everybody would be lining up...