In response to statewide reductions in funding for remedial college programs, the English and speech faculty at Daley College (DC) developed and implemented a special block program in fall 1988 for remedial/developmental students. The goal of the program is to prepare remedial students for college-level work within the 30 hours of remediation still funded by the state. The one year, 12-hour per semester program is comprised of eight courses. During the first semester, a social science course forms the center of the block, focusing on multicultural readings and analyses of the diverse cultures of the block students (e.g., Hispanic, Arabic, recent European immigrants, and African-American). The other three courses in the block are English, reading, and speech, all utilizing the same primary texts as the core course. A group of 25 students enroll in all four classes, plus a one-hour counseling course, and meet once a week for a study period with tutors. During the second semester, a humanities course forms the core of the block. The second semester shifts the focus from the students' cultures of the dominant U.S. culture within which the students must succeed. As before, English, reading, and speech make up the remaining three courses. Aside from one early drop-out, all students in the first year completed the fall semester and re-registered for the second semester. A post-test of reading ability showed average student gains of 1.7 years. In a comparison with a control group of students who scored comparably on placement tests, block program students accumulated more college credits towards graduation, had higher grade point averages, and were less likely to drop-out. (JMC)