Oregon's own Youth ChalleNGe Program, aimed at providing alternative education to high schoolers, has recently fetched an "outstanding" rating on a national scale, a mark no other program of its kind has achieved under the newly minted federal evaluation criteria, the Oregon Military Department reported.
The accolades come hard on the heels of an intense four-day inspection courtesy of the National Guard Bureau's Youth Programs Division, as part of a standard evaluation that revisits the program every three years. During this inspection period, the various facets of the OYCP, covering operation compliance, performance, and resource management, were all scrutinized under a fresh lens, leading to this groundbreaking distinction. The program's director, Frank Tallman, tipped his hat to the combined effort of staff, cadets and both state and federal partners, saying, "This is outstanding recognition to the staff, to the cadets, to the state, to our federal partners — everybody that helps the program had a part of this."
With a staff of 63 overseeing the achievements of 161 cadets, the program is experiencing burgeoning interest. Demonstrated by a recent class graduating a record 165 participants and the subsequent cohort kicking off with an unprecedented 191 cadets, numbers indicate a significant rise in applications post-COVID, revealing an apparently heightened demand for such programs across Oregon's 36 counties.
Even as space allows for up to 240 cadets per class, federal funding has not kept pace, remaining unchanged for the last three years. This static state of financial aid puts a damper on expanding the workforce to match the surging intake. The program, which is Oregon's sole accredited statewide alternative high school, soldiers on, offering no-cost education that covers a 22-week residential phase and a 24-month post-residential phase under the auspices of the Oregon National Guard, according to details provided by the Oregon Military Department.
Oregon's program connects to a broader framework of 37 across 29 states, each subject to the same triennial reviews by the National Guard Bureau to ensure standards are upheld and success, like Oregon's recent exemplary rating, can be achieved and celebrated.
