For at-risk students who stand little chance of going to college, or even finishing high school, a growing number of districts have found a solution: Give them an early start in college while they still are in high school. The early college high school (ECHS) movement that began with funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation 10 years ago has grown from a handful of schools to at least 230 schools now, serving more than 50,000 students in 28 states. An ECHS strategy, which combines high school and college-level instruction, reduces dropout rates and improves academic achievement levels while also boosting students' chances of graduating from school and finding jobs. About 86 percent of early college high school graduates in 2009 went on to some form of postsecondary education, according to Jobs for the Future, a Boston-based nonprofit that is spearheading a national Early College High School Initiative.