MORE STUDENTS STAYING PUT AT AREA SCHOOLS; OFFICIALS, TEENS CITE PROGRAMS.

Byline: Alex Roth and Melissa Schmitt Daily News Staff Writers

Los Angeles high school dropout figures released Friday show fewer students quit last year than during any single previous year - in part because of novel programs such as those used at Cleveland High School in Reseda.

Just ask 16-year-old Eric Johnson, a sophomore who is excited about a program that gives him more individualized attention from his teachers.

``Sometimes they don't act like your teacher but become your friend, and you can tell them about your problems at home,'' said Johnson, adding that his family never emphasized higher education.

Cleveland High School cut its one-year dropout rate from 15.21 percent in 1995-96 to 6.21 percent in 1996-1997, the largest percentage drop in the San Fernando Valley.

The reduction is symbolic of a districtwide trend. The percentage of students who dropped out of schools last year - 7.4 percent - was lower than during any single year in the system's history, school officials said.

``The schools that are doing well have put into place some very good programs,'' said Bob Collins, the Los Angeles Unified School District director of instruction. ``Those involve everything from being able to track where a youngster is, to providing them with a wide variety of alternatives if the youngster is in trouble.''

The district still exceeded the statewide rate of 3.3 percent, but district officials hope that within two years they'll be at the state average or below.

New programs

District officials credit the downward trend to several factors, including better in-school social programs, vocational training and efforts to make sure students don't simply vanish without an effort to track their whereabouts.

``The problem with some schools is just bad record keeping,'' said Patrick Spencer, a spokesman for the district. ``When they drop out, they don't say, we're dropping out. They just leave, and after a month you don't hear from them.''

By improving their tracking methods, some schools manage to coax dropouts to re-enroll, Spencer said. And sometimes the schools discover that the ``dropout'' has simply left for another school. At Cleveland, for instance, school officials now make an effort to include specific destination information in the files of every student who leaves.

Also at Cleveland, school officials have entered a partnership with Boeing. Once a week, students go to the airplane company's Canoga Park plant and follow workers around, learning tips of the trade.

``They're staying in school because they know there's something at the other end of the line,'' Assistant Principal Al Weiner said.

Not that everyone is thrilled with their school's performance.

Still struggling

Despite a decrease in the dropout rate at Van Nuys High School this year, the school has the highest in the Valley.

The dropout rate at the 3,282-student school fell from 17.25 percent last school year to 15.61 percent this year. That means 307 kids dropped out this past year.

``In this area there is a negative attitude about school. There is a poor attitude toward homework. The parents don't push enough at home. There is too much TV and video games and not enough supervision,'' Van Nuys Principal Russ Thompson said. ``That's what causes the low achievement. The kids start going downhill real quick. The less successful they are, the less they try.''

In addition, many of the kids don't have the basic skills to do well. Some kids are reading at a third-grade level, Thompson said.

And while the school has taken steps to battle these factors, the school can't do it without help from the parents, he said quietly.

In order to create more incentive for the students, the school has come up with a principal's honor roll and a student-of-the-month program. There are monthly meetings to draw in parents.

But for some youths, those things just aren't going to solve the problem, according to two Van Nuys students.

It's not the school, said Roxanne Flores, a 15-year-old sophomore. ``I'd say the mothers don't have papers and do have bills to pay and a lot of babies. They get the oldest child to work,'' she said.

Carlos Hurtado, 18, offered two other scenarios.

``I guess some people just can't take all the hard work. They're lazy,'' he said. ``And these days, it seems to be in style to get pregnant. Almost half the girl population around here is pregnant.''

CAPTION(S):

2 Photos, Chart

PHOTO (1) Students at Cleveland High work at the Reseda campus computer lab, among school services designed to keep kids in school by offering work-related skills training.

(2) Eric Johnson, 16, credits Cleveland High programs giving at-risk youths more attention with helping him stay in school.

Evan Yee/Daily News

CHART: DROUPOUT RATE DROPPING

The dropout rate among Los Angeles Unified School District high schools for 1996-97 was the lowest than during any single previous school year. Altogether for the district, the dropout rate was 7.4 percent, continuing a four-year consecutive decline.

SOURCE: California Dept. of Education

Dionisio Munoz/Daily News