"This book contains all the materials and activities needed to carry
out a faculty study. It will result in a full understanding
of advisory programs; and upon completion, a new advisory
program developed with the involvement of the faculty will
be created."

This is a big promise for a 47-page book (with DVD), yet authors
John M. Niska and Sue C. Thompson come through with a resource
that is clear, concise and meaningful for real people in real
schools. This is not a program or curriculum but rather a
well-organized and thoughtful framework of engaging activities
and organizers to develop and/or identify the Advisory program
and curriculum that are right for your community.

Though explicitly grounded in middle school philosophy, the approach
is consistent with the philosophy of small high schools, and
I wouldn't rule it out for use in any school where faculty
agree that "Every student needs at least one thoughtful adult
who has the time and takes the trouble to talk with the student
about academic matters, personal problems and the importance
of performing well...in school." (Turning Points, 1998).

The book is organized in a developmental sequence of nine modules
from "First Steps," to "Countdown to the Launch." Each module
contains a brief introduction then moves right into tasks
for active engagement in planning, with all the materials
and resources needed to complete those tasks. Within the modules
are opportunities for faculty to actively engage in consideration
of research and literature, exploration of their own beliefs
and experiences, and articulation and synthesis for implementation.

The enclosed DVD follows the concepts in each module, showing
how they are brought to life in different schools. With clips
of actual Advisories as well as adults and students talking
about what they do in their schools, viewers see the diversity
of successful Advisory programs in a variety of communities.
The primary messages from the written material are artfully
illustrated in the video-clips, particularly that Advisory
programs are most successful when "they take place as one
component of the larger school-wide advocacy...."

There are some assumptions to be aware of as you consider successfully
following this process. There would need to be a degree of
leadership capacity to fill in some details, a planning team
with time to prepare and the skills to facilitate the process
and potentially sensitive discussions, dedicated faculty meetings
or common planning time, and perhaps most essentially, agreement
with and access to basic resources. These include: This
We Believe: Successful Schools for Young Adolescents (NMSA
2003); This We Believe in Action (NMSA 2005); Turning
Points 2000 (Jackson & Davis, 2000), and Advisory:
Definitions, Descriptions, Decisions, Directions (Galassi,
Gulledge, Cox 1998). The authors state that this process might
easily take a year to complete. Their framework is not for
those looking for a quick fix -- or trying to think what to
do during Advisory this week. Instead, it engages faculty
in dialogue with potentially far reaching impact. This would
also be an ideal support for new schools during a planning
year before they open.