Crim High in Atlanta and Phoenix High in Lawrenceville aren't like other high schools.

Many of their students dropped out of other schools and are years behind in their studies. Both schools provide a second chance to earn a high school diploma. They offer day care for students' children. They hold classes until about 8 p.m. because many students work full time.

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The 21 alternative high school programs in Georgia are not meant to have students graduate in four years, but the federal government uses four-year graduation rates to determine whether high schools meet the academic goals of the No Child Left Behind Act.

That makes it nearly impossible for alternative schools to meet the standard, state Superintendent of Schools Kathy Cox said.

"What's happening to these schools doesn't make any sense," Cox said. "These schools are not designed for the four-year student, yet that is the way they're measured. These schools are doing their mission and getting penalized for it."

None of the state's alternative schools met the standard last year. The law punishes schools that repeatedly fail and rewards those that make adequate yearly progress, also known as AYP.

Cox asked the U.S. Department of Education in February for permission to use something other than graduation rates to grade the state's alternative schools. No decision has been made, but Cox said she's optimistic because the federal government asked for additional information last month.

Local school leaders said they hope the federal government understands the unique demands of alternative schools.

Crim High serves students who are at least 16 years old and two years or more behind in school, said Kathy Augustine, deputy superintendent for curriculum and instruction for Atlanta Public Schools. Some students haven't been in school for a couple of years before attending Crim, she said.

Crim's test scores were good enough last year to meet the standard, but only 27 percent of its students graduated in four years, according to state reports. The school needed at least 65 percent to graduate on time.

"They're putting us in a conventional box when we're a nontraditional school," Augustine said. "We don't fit in that box. We never will."

The U.S. Department of Education declined to comment while considering Georgia's request. The department didn't have information on requests from others states concerning alternative high schools, said Jo Ann Webb, a spokeswoman.

No Child Left Behind is President Bush's signature domestic initiative. Signed into law in 2002, the act seeks giant gains in student achievement and holds schools accountable for reaching these goals. Schools that fail face increasingly severe sanctions, up to a possible takeover by the state.

The law measures a Georgia high school's success by using students' scores on the Georgia High School Graduation Test and other criteria, including graduation rates. Cox suggested swapping out graduation rates and using course completion rates or scores from another state exam to rate alternative schools.

Groups that monitor the law don't know whether the government has granted similar waivers to other states. The U.S. Department of Education doesn't publicize what is granted or requested, said Jack Jennings, president of the nonpartisan Center on Education Policy.

"The law say no child will be left behind," Jennings said. "But the fact is some children have special needs and the government has made very limited exceptions for them."

Alternative schools are not looking for special treatment, said Delores Hendrix, an area superintendent for Gwinnett County Public Schools whose region includes Phoenix High.

"We want to be measured like other schools so the public can see how we're doing," Hendrix said. "We just want the measuring tool to be a fair one."

Congress could resolve the alternative school dilemma by changing the law. Although lawmakers are supposed to reauthorize the law this year, they can't agree on all the details. The law remains unchanged.

Cox said she worries other school districts will be reluctant to open alternative schools unless the law changes.

"Would a school system want to open a school that would be constantly penalized?" Cox said. "These schools work but there is no way to measure that."

ALTERNATIVE SCHOOLS

Georgia has 21 alternative high school programs. Here are the programs in the metro area:

• Atlanta Public Schools: Crim High and APS-CEP Partnership School.
• DeKalb County: DeKalb Alternative School, DeKalb Transition School and DeKalb Truancy School.
• Fulton County: Independence Alternative School, McClarin Alternative School and Crossroads/Second Chance Program.
• Gwinnett County: Phoenix High and Gwinnett InterVention Education (GIVE) Center.

— Source: Georgia Department of Education.