Students with interrupted formal education (SIFE) are a relatively small proportion of recently arrived English language learners (ELLs), probably somewhere between 10 and 20 percent. However, these students often represent the most challenging of the ELLs because of their limited first-language literacy skills, frequent gaps in academic knowledge and skills, and, sometimes, critical social and emotional needs. Also, many tend to arrive unaccompanied as teenagers, making their need to catch up academically even more urgent. Students with interrupted education need specialized programming and assistance, above and beyond what is normally provided to ELLs. This belief is supported in a recent statement from World-class Instructional Design and Assessment "WIDA" (a consortium of 40 states whose education departments have joined together to develop English proficiency standards and assessments) about SIFE: "Students with this background often need their emotional, psychological, and physiological needs to be met before they are able to engage fully in the educational setting." Once these needs are met, schools must help students build literacy skills in their home language and English, fill in the gaps in content knowledge, and support their social and emotional needs. This article explains who these students are, where they are coming from, and the specific characteristics SIFE students have in common. It also provides a list of supports recommended by the Council of Chief State School Officers for secondary school newcomers (including those with interrupted education).