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College Station Independent School District

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Center for Alternative Learning

Project: Center for Alternative Learning

Estimated Cost: $15,500,000

The Center for Alternative Learning (CAL) includes Timber Academy High School (TAHS), the Venture Center (secondary disciplinary alternative education placement program) and the elementary disciplinary alternative education placement program, commonly known as LEAP.

TAHS meets a tremendous need in CSISD by allowing students to earn high school diplomas in a non-traditional instructional format. TAHS is not a school for students with discipline issues or students who want a GED. It is a school that allows for students to work at their own pace, and, often times, the pace of the students exceeds the pace they would experience at a traditional high school. TAHS also allows for opportunities to combine teacher directed instruction, computer generated instruction and small group collaboration as a standard part of the educational process.

The current facility that houses TAHS only allows CSISD to serve approximately 40-50 students at any one time. Because of the limited space, the district is unable to market TAHS to the general high school population. Those who apply to attend TAHS hear about it through friends, acquaintances and the high school counselors. The vision of CSISD is to increase the student capacity of TAHS and to be able to market it to the general high school population in order to provide an alternative to the traditional high school experience.

Along with a new facility, the district will have the opportunity to re-brand TAHS (and perhaps even change its name) to a school of choice that provides academic rigor, excellent instructional experiences and customized learning.

Venture Center and LEAP would continue to be part of the CAL. The new construction would allow for Venture and LEAP to be separated from TAHS, complete with separate entrances.