When I visited, senior students were divided into teams , each of which was researching a public policy challenge in their local area. One group was looking at underemployment, another at teen mental health services, another at the local consequences of a recent California ballot initiative that has changed arrest and incarceration policy. The group that most caught my attention had taken on the local fire station–a dilapidated structure from the 1920s that had never replaced its dirt floor. This group had interviewed not only fire safety personnel but also local residents, trying to understand why a bond measure to repair the facility failed by only 18 votes. I believe they will spark an effort to bring the building up-to-date.

One cannot help but be impressed by Aldermain’s students! They are learning to ask probing questions and seek practical solutions while at the same time learning to work together productively. There is much more to say about what Steve Main and Cathy Alderman do, but I hope this gives readers an idea of the potential of this teaching model.