Faced with alarming dropout rates, educators must find ways to encourage students at risk of dropping out to remain in school. This book describes a variety of prevention programs based on partnerships between universities and local elementary and secondary schools. Among the innovative approaches were combining education and social services in early intervention, collaborating with the families of young children and adolescents, and arranging participatory visits to college campuses for high school students. Guidelines are offered for creating a program that fits the individual needs of schools, obtaining funding, staffing the program, selecting students to participate, and evaluating the program's effectiveness. Following the prologue, "The Evolution of a School-University Partnership (John Devine), are: (1) "New York State's Stay-in-School Partnership Program: Overview and Evaluation" (Charles F. Graber, and others); (2) "Home-School Partnerships: Involving Families in the Educational Process" (Ian M. Evans, Akiko Okifuji, and Alison D. Thomas); (3) "Early Intervention: Linking Education and Social Services with Care" (Terry Cicchelli and Richard E. Baecher); (4) "Starting a University-School Partnership in a High-Risk School" (Joseph C. Grannis); (5) "An Inclusion Model To Reduce At-Risk Status among Middle School Students: The Syracuse Experience" (Luanna H. Meyer, and others); (6) "Change in the Education System: A Middle School Perspective" (Marvin Cohen); (7) "The University Visit: A Mosaic of Futures" (Jeffrey Beaudry, and others; (8)"School-University Houses: Support for the Restructuring of Secondary Schools" (Norman P. Shapiro and Rhoda Pearl Peltzer); (9) "Partnership Dynamics in Practice" (Michael N. Bazigos); (10) "A Perspective on Students at Risk in the Suburbs" (Aaron W. Godfrey); (11) "School-Centered Teacher Education: School Improvement through Staff Development" (Norman P. Shapiro); and (12) "Preparing Teachers for Student Diversity: Education Course Curriculum" (Allison F. Alden). The epilogue, "Learning Together: Practical Lessons from School-University Partnerships," (Ian M. Evans, and others) concludes the book. Contains 183 references. (LMI)