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An evaluation of the Nuclear Skill Related Training Program at Memphis State University was conducted to identify possible motivational and attitudinal variables that may contribute to the retention-attrition rates of Job Corps students (40 percent) admitted to the program compared to non-Job Corps students who are migrant workers (2 percent). The program consists of 26 weeks of intensive training on a daily 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. basis. A questionnaire was developed to determine personal and motivational attitudes of the 11 currently enrolled students related to the administration and content of the Nuclear Studies Program, and short personal interviews were also conducted with these students. Data gathered in the survey indicated that the students are somewhat pleased with the program, have a strong commitment to the program, and feel that academic problems would be their major reason for dropping out if they did so. Most changes suggested by students involved the instructional area, especially in relation to the professors/instructors, modules, and the practicality of course control. Another group of suggestions was about student personnel staff. In order to strengthen retention of students in the program, the study recommended that enlistment personnel in Job Corps centers be more specific about program content, difficulty, and the probability of jobs after graduation. It also recommended that the program offer more remedial services and that instructors be more available for consultations and be more practical in class. (KC)

1Boy Crusoe

By Allan Eric

Also published as" A Yankee Crusoe" . A 15 year old hard working and studious farm boy finds the lure of adventure on the seas as a merchant seaman more than he can resist. This is his story. " I was born in a little town in the State of Maine, near the close of the Civil War. My boyhood life did not differ materially from that of the average farmer's son in the remote country districts of New England--except, perhaps, that I read more and thought more. Hard work on the rugged soil, two terms each year in the little yellow country schoolhouse, a day's fishing now and then filled the early years of my life full to over-flowing. " What he gets is enough excitement and adventure to overflow his wildest dreams. How he experiences disaster and uses his wits and knowledge to overcome every problem makes for a great read. - Summary by Phil Chenevert