The students, primarily from Bethlehem High School but also from the middle school, will be supervised by a teacher, said Richard Svenson, president of Bethlehem's school board.

The board approved the one-year pilot program, which could start as early as this month, in a 5-2 vote Dec. 21. Svenson was one of the dissenters. He supported the overall objective but was uncomfortable committing the money without more details, such as what other options there might be and what other schools' experience with similar initiatives has been.

Bethlehem patterned its program after an approach Niskayuna schools took. The Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk school district also started a similar program this year. Students disciplined in that program serve their suspensions in a room at Ravena Village Hall.

Bethlehem High has been in the news recently for two incidents involving the disciplining of students. One involved allegations of sex in a school bathroom, the other a student who streaked across the football field during the homecoming game. Svenson said there was no link between the new program and those cases.

Of Bethlehem High's 1,720 students, 70 students are responsible for half of the behavioral referrals, meaning incidents where students are referred to administrators for a range of infractions, not all of them serious, Svenson said. Many of those students are also failing classes.

"Quite simply, persons with a lot of referrals are also in trouble with their subjects," Svenson said. "These kids really need some individual attention."

The new program is intended to help that core group of problem kids. Aside from the teacher doing group and individual education, social workers and behavioral specialists will also work with students.

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