State leaders in Arkansas have established a solid foundation for high school transformation through efforts to support college and career readiness. To ensure that all Arkansas students graduate with the academic knowledge, cognitive skills, and durable competencies they need to thrive, state leaders developed the G.U.I.D.E for Life program. The program outlines five principles—Growth, Understanding, Interaction, Decisions, and Empathy—identified as being necessary for success after graduation that should, accordingly, be incorporated into student learning experiences.
State leaders have also taken steps to align high school diplomas with college entrance requirements and to ensure that every student has access to advanced coursework by requiring districts to offer at least one AP course in each of the core content areas. To further support college readiness, the state has developed a data and reporting system that provides school-level information about student credit accumulation in college.
State leaders can accelerate high school transformation efforts by broadening seat time flexibility policies and exploring opportunities to launch a statewide initiative with dedicated resources to incentivize community-led high school redesign.
