The Council Bluffs School District has announced that Kanesville High School will no longer operate for alternative education starting in the fall.

Since the start of the school year, the district has been searching for answers to the many problems that hinder student success. Low test scores, high absentee rates and low graduation numbers are the three issues proving to be more than a challenge for administrators.

Now comes a fourth challenge. Kanesville High, where several hundred students attend classes, will no longer operate for alternative education come the 2008--2009 school year.

Council Bluffs is not making the grade when it comes to closing the books on poor attendance and improving academic performance.

"I'd give us an incomplete right now,” says Council Bluffs School Superintendent Martha Bruckner. “We're not done. We've been working at this plan pretty much seven or eight months."

To help its students come to class and graduate on time, a number of early morning clubs have been in place since the beginning of the year. Parents receive calls when their child doesn't show up and for the students who don't make the grade the traditional way, there was Kanesville High School.

Students say it's better than any of the traditional schools in Council Bluffs. "I came here bullheaded when I left AL, I was still bullheaded here, but my attitude completely changed after attending this school," says student Beca Wolfe.

"Some people are struggling in school and there are some programs in here that help students, especially if they're struggling with math and stuff, there are teachers that understand how to communicate with the kids," says student Heather Vore.

"According to the system, I would be considered a dropout since it took over my four years, but the fact is I'm still here, I'm still doing it and if it wasn't for Kanesville, I wouldn't be in school," says student Pam Sherbon.

All three girls will graduate this spring and they'll be the last class to do so. Starting this fall, Kanesville will be different and only open to students needing to make up credits.

"We're gonna provide transportation," says Buckner. "We're gonna try our best to make it as easy as possible."

There will be the exception for those extreme cases, but the majority of Council Bluffs High School students will have to attend mainstream courses at one of the two traditional high schools.

Something else that applies district-wide is a new grading system. It will measure student progress on a scale from zero to four, completely different than the grading scale we're familiar with from zero to 100.