Mountain Valley Middle School alternative education students and teachers Shane Smith and Anthony Mazza gather for a group selfie.

At Mountain Valley Middle School, students in the alternative education program begin each day with breakfast before heading to the gym to reset, move, and prepare for learning. They then gather in a morning circle to review schedules, discuss upcoming activities, reflect on current events, and practice strategies for managing stress and conflict. Co-alternative education teachers Shane Smith and Anthony Mazza use these routines to create consistency, strengthen relationships, and set a positive tone for the day.

Each day of the alternative education program at Mountain Valley Middle School begins with breakfast, a movement break, and a morning circle.

For many students, the program offers a learning environment built around connection, structure, and support. Launched during the 2023-2024 school year for grades 6-8, the program was designed to provide a flexible, relationship-centered approach for students who benefit from a different path to success than a traditional classroom setting may provide.

“We built the ship as we were sailing it,” Smith said.

What began as a new and evolving program quickly developed through reflection, collaboration, and responsiveness to student needs. During the program’s early stages, students and staff temporarily worked out of a recreation center while school buildings underwent mold remediation. This required creativity and adaptability from everyone involved.

“At the time, we were figuring everything out in real time,” Smith said. “We had difficult days, but we kept reflecting, adjusting, and learning from what students needed.”

The program now operates within the main school building. It’s a transition staff say has strengthened students’ sense of inclusion and connection to the larger school community.

“We’re visible now,” Smith said. “Our students are part of the school community. They aren’t separated or hidden away.”

Building Learning Around Relationships, Engagement, and Community

From the beginning, Smith and Mazza designed the alternative education program as an environment where students feel engaged in their learning.

“It’s important that this isn’t a dumping ground,” Smith said. “We want students to feel supported, challenged, and connected.”

The program serves approximately 14 students with a student-to-staff ratio of about seven7 to one. Students follow a full-day schedule that blends academics, structured supports, and experiential learning opportunities designed to make coursework accessible and meaningful. Core instruction is adapted to meet a range of academic needs. Smith and Mazza use shorter instructional segments, guided practice, and frequent feedback to help students build confidence and remain engaged.

Project-based and place-based learning are also central to the program. Students participate in activities such as designing aquaponics systems, bridge-building challenges, 3D printing, and explorations of local Rumford history that connect classroom concepts to real-world experiences. Collaborative writing, journaling, and creative projects are also implemented regularly to encourage self-expression and communication.

Mountain Valley Middle School alternative education students engage in hands-on, real-world learning experiences—planting seedlings, sorting historical events into patterns of change, and building bridges—applying high-interest activities to strengthen the acquisition and application of knowledge.

“We want learning to feel connected to something real,” Smith said. “Not just something happening on paper.”

Students regularly participate in field trips, outdoor learning opportunities, guest speaker visits, and service-learning projects that extend learning beyond the classroom. They also contribute through volunteering, food pantry support, and local clean-up efforts, while activities such as hiking and trail walks provide opportunities for reflection, teamwork, and personal growth.

Mountain Valley Middle School alternative education students and teachers Shane Smith and Anthony Mazza fill the community wood-bank and conduct clean-up efforts. These measures help students feel connected to their local community.

“A lot of our students are confined to a small part of town,” Smith said. “Getting outside, exploring, volunteering, and connecting learning to the community makes a huge difference.”

Mountain Valley Middle School alternative education students explore both their local and broader community through experiential, outdoor learning opportunities. Smith shared that, “Being outside lowers stress and cortisol and increases serotonin and happiness levels. Time spent outside improves focus and invites exploration, questioning, and discovery. It’s ever-changing, multi-sensory, and novel. Our trips are challenging and require persistence. Nature is the antidote to heavy screen time and the quick dopamine it provides.”

Across subjects, the focus extends beyond academic completion to helping students develop persistence, confidence, and a stronger sense of belonging in school.

Supporting the Whole Student

Alongside academics, the alternative education program prioritizes emotional regulation, relationship building, and student wellness. Structured morning meetings help students prepare for the day while creating routines that foster stability and predictability.

When students become overwhelmed, Smith and Mazza focus on helping them regulate and re-engage. Students may take a walk or use breathing strategies before returning to instruction. Movement and physical activity are intentionally built into the schedule, giving students opportunities to reset and return to learning more focused and ready to engage.

Mountain Valley Middle School alternative education students take quick breaks outdoors (jumping into a pile of fall leaves) and indoors (engaging in “A Gentle Rain,” a silent, collaborative tile-laying game designed to help ground and regulate students before their next class).

The program also incorporates counseling support provided by the school’s counseling and social work teams, helping students build practical coping and communication skills. Smith and Mazza work closely with families and outside providers when needed, recognizing that strong support systems play an important role in student success.

Mountain Valley Middle School alternative education students participate in a daily wellness class twice a week when Sydney Rowe, middle school counselor, helps them to build emotional intelligence skills.

“One thing we’ve learned is that we can’t do this work alone,” Smith said. “Students need systems of support around them.”

As schools across Maine continue exploring ways to support students with diverse strengths and needs, alternative education programs like the one at Mountain Valley Middle School highlight how alternative education can provide innovative, student-centered environments where relationships, flexibility, and meaningful engagement help students build confidence, reconnect with learning, and experience success.

Co-alternative education teachers Mazza and Smith wear matching, handmade crochet sweaters. They say they’re looking forward to the 2026-2027 school year as they continue to grow and craft their middle school alternative education program.

Members of the REACH School gather around founder the late Dot McMahan.

The Rural Educational Alternative Community Middle/High (REACH) School in Bucksport is a private, nonprofit alternative middle and high school program designed to meet students where they are academically, socially, and emotionally. Serving students from RSU 25—which includes Bucksport, Orland, Prospect, and Verona Island—as well as surrounding communities, the REACH School provides an alternative learning environment centered on engagement, relationships, and individualized support for students who have struggled to find success in traditional school settings.

Within a small, community-based environment, students at the REACH School reconnect with learning through hands-on instruction, consistent relationships, and real-world application. The REACH School emphasizes student responsibility for academic progress, personal growth, and goal setting, while fostering collaboration among students, families, staff, and the broader community.

Leadership and Student Connection

The REACH School director and teacher Seth Laplant joined the program in 2020 after nearly two decades working in education.

“Students can’t really learn until they feel comfortable and curious,” Laplant said.

In his dual role at the program, Laplant said he has noticed that many students arrive having experienced long-term academic and personal challenges that affected their confidence in school.

“What many of them share is that they’ve stopped believing they can be successful in school,” Laplant said.

Teacher Holly Cough began working at the school as a volunteer before transitioning into a full-time teaching role. She now works alongside Laplant, supporting students through academic instruction and social-emotional learning.

Cough said the focus of their work is on rebuilding confidence by creating an environment where students feel safe enough to take risks.

“When students stop being afraid to fail, they start taking chances again,” Cough said.

Program Background and Approach

The REACH School was founded in 1987 by a group of educators to provide both adult and alternative education. Later, the program narrowed its focus solely to alternative education. Over time, the school developed a model centered on individualized instruction, student responsibility, and community connection.

Many students who attend the program have experienced anxiety, interrupted educational pathways, or difficulty engaging in larger school environments.

“There’s really no typical alternative education student,” Laplant said. “What we see is a wide range of needs but a shared experience of being disconnected from school.”

Instruction, Learning Structure, and Applied Learning

The REACH School provides flexible instruction for students in grades 7-12, with learners often working across multiple academic levels within the same classroom. Core academic areas include English, mathematics, science, and social studies, with an emphasis on individualized pacing, credit attainment, and applied learning aligned with graduation requirements.

Rather than progressing through content in a single sequence, students work across different skill levels based on their needs and progress.

“We’re looking at how students are engaging in the learning, not just whether they complete something,” Laplant said. “It shifts the focus toward growth and participation.”

That approach shapes daily instruction. Teachers use a blend of direct instruction, small-group collaboration opportunities, discussion-based learning, and independent work, allowing students multiple ways to access content and demonstrate understanding. Mathematics instruction ranges from “Math for Life,” which emphasizes financial literacy and real-world application, to algebra, geometry, and advanced independent study. English instruction spans foundational literacy development through college and career writing preparation.

Project-based learning is also embedded throughout instruction and used to connect academic content to real-world applications. Through Project REACH, students take on large-scale, student-led initiatives that require planning, collaboration, budgeting, and execution.

“These projects give students ownership over something real,” Cough said. “They’re not just completing assignments. They’re building something together.”

Recent examples include a student-run haunted house, developed after “Fright at the Fort” at Fort Knox was discontinued, where students organized, designed, and operated a community event. Smaller classroom projects also extend learning opportunities, including a “Little Free Art Library,” designed, built, and painted by students for community art exchange.

Across classes, students regularly engage in group discussion, brainstorming, and collaborative problem-solving before transitioning into independent work.

“We hold students to high expectations,” Laplant said. “But we also meet them where they are.”

Life Skills, Responsibility, and Career Readiness

The REACH School integrates life skills instruction through “Adulting 101,” which includes budgeting, transportation, laundry, and independent living skills.

Students also participate in structured career exploration to support postsecondary planning and workplace readiness.

A defining feature of the program is shared responsibility for maintaining the school environment. With no custodial staff, students rotate duties such as cleaning, organizing, and maintaining shared spaces. This structure is intended to build accountability, independence, and real-world responsibility.

Student Support and Mentorship

The REACH School provides academic and social-emotional supports through school staff and community partnerships, reflecting broader statewide efforts to strengthen coordinated student support systems in alternative education settings.

The program partners with organizations such as Healthy Acadia and RSU 25 to provide access to recovery coaching, counseling supports, and social work services. These partnerships supplement available supports, particularly as demand for mental health and behavioral services continues to increase.

“It has helped us identify needs earlier and respond more quickly,” Cough said.

Within the school, additional support is provided through regular check-ins between staff and students focused on academic progress, well-being, and personal goals. Staff said these conversations are valuable for maintaining connection and early awareness of student needs, although capacity for formalized support remains limited.

As student needs continue to grow across alternative education programs statewide, educators say schools are increasingly relying on coordinated systems that combine school-based staff with regional providers to expand access without additional dedicated resources.

Due to the school’s small size, peer mentorship also plays a visible role in daily life. Students who have been in the program for a longer amount of time often support newer students as they adjust to academic expectations, routines, and the school environment.

“We see students supporting each other in meaningful ways,” Laplant said.

School Culture and Daily Structure

Community-building is embedded in daily routines at the REACH School.

Each morning begins with a schoolwide meeting where students and staff participate in a “Question of the Day,” share updates, and engage in discussion. Topics often include personal experiences, school events, and broader social-emotional themes.

“As teachers, we participate in those conversations, too,” Cough said. “It helps build trust and openness across the school.”

Students who arrive late receive a shortened version of the meeting to remain connected to daily dialogue.

The school maintains traditions and student-led activities throughout the year, supporting connection, belonging, and engagement.

Post-Graduation Pathways

Graduates of the REACH School pursue a wide range of pathways, including college, technical training, employment, travel, volunteer service, and creative careers. Many remain connected to the program after graduation through volunteering or continued involvement with school activities.

Teachers and families often report increased confidence and independence among students who have completed the program.

“We hear from families and former teachers that students are completely different when they leave here than when they arrived,” Cough said.

As alternative education continues to evolve across Maine, the REACH School highlights how engagement-based instruction, real-world learning, shared responsibility, and strong relationships can help students reconnect with education and move toward meaningful future pathways.

This story was written in collaboration with Rural Educational Alternative Community Middle/High (REACH) School as part of an ongoing series to highlight alternative education programs across Maine. For more information about alternative education, please visit the Maine DOE Alternative Education webpage. To submit a good news story to the Maine DOE, please fill out the good news submission form.