Thoughts from the NovaNET Site Directors… "NovaNET is absolutely a key component of students understanding and taking responsibility for their education." "Typically, once a student enters Quest High School, they graduate. Simply stated, my parents know that their children are going to graduate and graduate on time." "NovaNET has been a great tool for our school. It has helped us in so many ways! It gives us the ability to offer additional options for our students to master basic skills that they may have missed, but are required for our upper level classes. Ultimately, NovaNET enables us to help students recover credits needed to complete their high school education and graduate!"
"Before Quest High School and the NovaNET program, I was waiting for the drop-out age. I now believe that I am a success story because I will graduate and meet my goals." "With NovaNET, I can pre-test out of the material that I already know. I have gone to a lot of schools and learned a lot. Now I can use this knowledge to obtain credits faster and graduate on time!" "NovaNET has really helped me obtain my credits. I used to have a bad attendance problem. Now, with the help of NovaNET, if I do miss a day, I don’t get behind. The computer does not allow me to get behind. I take notes and this really helps me obtain credits for graduation." "With NovaNET, I can work at my own pace. I am hearing impaired and it used to be very difficult for me to keep up with the teachers and with the school work. Now, with NovaNET, it is just me and the computer and I am earning all my credits toward graduation." "I used to have a lot of problems in school because I would get into arguments when other students would make fun of me for asking questions or not answering something correctly. I like NovaNET because it is just me and the program. I don’t get behind. It’s great!" |
 Quest High SchoolNorth Branch, Michigan
The demographic make up of Quest High School is approximately:
Background Information
Solution—NovaNET® Pearson Digital Learning’s NovaNET program was purchased through state funding and implemented at Quest High School in 2004. The NovaNET program is an online comprehensive courseware system that delivers thousands of hours of standards-based, interactive curriculum with integrated assessment, student management and record keeping. The system acts like a personal tutor for each student. Students progress at their own pace and receive continual feedback and instructive encouragement along the way. The program operates 30 ports on a Windows™ platform.
Since implementing NovaNET at Quest High School, North Branch Area School District has shown an increase in the number of graduating students and significantly lowered the number of drop-out students. After three years of using the NovaNET program, Quest High School’s graduation rate has increased from 27 percent to 70 percent!
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a Success Story 
Quest High School is an alternative high school that is located in Lapeer County in North Branch, Michigan.
North Branch Area High School had between 30 and 40 students drop out each year and enter neighboring districts for their alternative education programs. North Branch researched this challenge for two years. Under the leadership of Terese Jurgensen, Quest High School was developed as an alternative education high school. Top on the list of priorities for Quest was to identify a program that would assist students with credit recovery and increase the graduation rate.
There are 125 students that have used the NovaNET program throughout the year. Students choose to come to Quest High School and there is currently a waiting list to enroll. Both students and parents are interviewed and a contract is signed prior to acceptance. One criterion for admission into the program is that the student must be three or more credits behind their graduating class. Other students at Quest are those who pay a small fee for credit recovery after school. Additionally, there are over 60 students that attend summer school at Quest who also benefit from using the NovaNET program. 
Quest High School has six, 6-week terms. There are three daily sessions from 7:45 a.m. to 10:40 a.m., 11:15 a.m. to 2:40 a.m. and 2:45 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. During each of these sessions, the student uses NovaNET for one hour. They also teach regular classes, utilize School-to-Work curricula, hold Educational Technology classes, and work on social skills/team building during school hours.
Students at Quest have been able to realize progress, identify areas for improvement and set and achieve personal goals. They have been able to take advantage of the NovaNET curriculum and are able to recover and gain credits towards their high school diplomas. In addition, at-risk students are given the opportunity to excel and graduate despite personal setbacks. Pearson Digital Learning and Quest High School have partnered together to help students achieve their goals and successfully complete their high school education. 
