Blacksburg and Gaffney High School teachers will mentor 120 at-risk high school students through a new graduation assistance program.

Using an electronic data system, teachers and school administrators will work on a weekly basis to help the select group of students succeed in school.

States will receive federal stimulus funds to provide grants to support innovative school programs in local school districts.

The Cherokee County School District will send a representative later this month to the state Department of Education in Columbia. Superintendent Dr. Bill James said the school district wants to see if its graduation assistance program would be eligible for a "Race to the Top" grant.

The "Race to the Top" initiative was created as part of the federal stimulus economic package. It is part of the U.S. Department of Education agenda to promote school innovation in public schools.

The school district is looking at the "Race to the Top" initiative as a potential funding source to expand the graduation assistance program, James said. The grant funding would help the district in its efforts to boost high school graduation rates.

Gaffney High has improved its graduation rate from 62.8 percent in 2007 to 77.1 percent in 2008. Blacksburg High improved its graduation rate from 80 percent to 84.7 percent over the same period.

"Our ultimate goal is to see students graduate from high school," James said. "We think the graduation assistance program is an innovative idea which will help more students be successful in school."