Current Student Information

Guiding Principles

Our school operates under three guiding principles:

Higher Learning —All HAAHS students will be prepared for college, regardless of whether they intend to attend college upon graduation or pursue employment or other forms of higher learning such as skilled trades, Job Corps, vocational education, etc.
No Excuses —It does not matter where a person has been or why they are here; our focus is where they are headed and what they are willing to do to get there. We make improvements, not excuses.
See it Through —We make a commitment to ourselves, our families and our communities to complete what we've started here at HAAHS and elsewhere in our lives. We will work hard. We will do our best. We will see it through.

Higher Learning Portfolio

In order to receive a diploma all HAAHS students must complete a Higher Learning Portfolio to include:

Completed FAFSA application
Two letters of recommendation (one by a teacher or HAAHS staff member, one by non-family member adult)
Register to take the ACT
Three completed college applications
Completed applications for any three scholarships
Completed application to Job Corps or Americorps or to a vocational or trade school of the students' choosing
Completed resume
Participation in a Mock Interview
Three completed job applications

Graduation Requirements

Students must have a minimum of 19 credits (based on the Chicago Public Schools credit system) to graduate from Howard Area Alternative High School . These credits must meet the Illinois State Board of Education minimum requirements and must come from the following areas:
The equivalent of four (4) years of study of English Literature and Language Arts
The equivalent of four (4) years of study of Mathematics
The equivalent of two (2) years of study of Social Science (including one (1) year of U.S. History)
The equivalent of two (2) years of study of Science
The equivalent of seven (7) years of study of Electives

Tests