PASS Program

The Portable Assisted Study Sequence (PASS) program offers high school students a chance to earn credit for missed or incomplete courses, helping them stay on track for graduation. Learning packages are available for most required subjects and a variety of elective courses. Some courses are offered in both English and Spanish, and some are available for grades 6-8 (“Mini PASS”) to ease the transition to high school.

PASS courses offer great flexibility, allowing the student to progress through five activity books and accompanying tests at his or her own pace. Because of this structure, students are able to continue course work as they move from district to district or even from state to state.

The National PASS Center in New York provides leadership for national PASS efforts, oversees course development and revisions, and serves as a clearinghouse and repository. The Midwest Region PASS Dissemination Center in Gardner is one of several PASS Material Dissemination Centers across the country.

Why use the PASS program?

Make up failed courses
Subject area remediation
School does not offer course when needed
Partial credit for course completion
Elective credit
Dropout recovery
GED preparation

What is needed for appropriate use of PASS?

Highly motivated student
Ability to work semi-independently
Sufficient time available
Adequate language skills

What courses are available?

A current list of available courses can be found on the National PASS Center’s web site: PASS Courses.

What is included with each PASS course?

5 units per course
14 lessons per unit
Pre and post tests for each unit (pre test only for newly adopted courses)
Mentor manual
Supplementary materials
90 total hours of instruction

Historical Background

PASS originated in California in 1978 as part of the Secondary School Migrant Dropout Prevention Program. It was designed to allow migrant high school students to earn credits through the completion of self-directed courses as they moved with their families from one school district to another. One school district issued the credits for all PASS courses, a model that has been adopted by many other states. Migrant educators from other states soon learned of the California program and its success. Arkansas and Washington began using the program in 1981, Arizona and Oregon in 1983, and New York and Wisconsin in 1984. States and school districts adapted the program to meet the needs of students they served. PASS is now used in approximately thirty states. More than forty courses are now available.

As PASS became more widely utilized, educators saw that the concept would also help middle school students. In 1985, Wisconsin began developing Mini-PASS courses. An extension of PASS for students in grades 6, 7, and 8, Mini-PASS has a selection of more than twenty courses.