Whidbey Island students at risk of not graduating from high school will have some more help after the start of the year.

Thanks to a $97,500 federal grant, the Coupeville School District is developing a program to help at-risk students meet their graduation requirements and prepare to enter the job market.

Superintendent Patty Page likened the program to “a school within a school.”

Enrolled students will take classes in the high school annex building. Students will take classes to earn “back credits” mostly through online courses. They can also take independent study courses or direct instruction courses at the high school.

“It’s made to be a blending of our traditional school and specialized program,” Page said in a Monday morning meeting last week.

What makes the new program different is the huge emphasis on career development, Page said. In addition to catching up on their coursework, students will also learn to write a resume, develop interview skills and visit job sites.

The Coupeville School District operated a similar program last summer, which Page said was successful. Approximately 100 students from Coupeville, Oak Harbor and South Whidbey took courses in the summer program. In all, participants earned 88 semester credits.

In Coupeville, the summer school program immediately improved the graduation rate for the class of 2009. Last June, 92 percent of Coupeville’s senior class graduated. Once the summer school program wrapped up, that rate climbed to 96 percent.

“It’s a pretty phenomenal success rate,” Page said.

Like the summer school offering, Coupeville’s new program will allow students from Oak Harbor and South Whidbey to attend as well. The new program isn’t intended to compete with alternative programs in Oak Harbor or South Whidbey, but rather will provide students with another option.

Currently the school will be able to accept the equivalent of 40 full-time students. A teacher and a para-educator will provide the education program.

The school district received the one-year grant from Federal Title I money for juvenile and delinquent students.

Page said the grant will help get the program off the ground. Once students start attending, then the school district won’t need grant dollars to continue funding. By then, the school district will receive state money, which is based on school district enrollment.