WHEN Amber Razo dropped out of high school, just surviving was her focus. She left home at 16 and held down three jobs to make ends meet.

The 21-year-old north Houston resident shared her experiences, and her motivation for returning to school, last month when she joined community volunteers in a mass campaign to bring Aldine dropouts back to school.

The effort, Reach Out To Dropouts, was an Aldine version of the initiative Houston Independent School District and Houston launched in 2005 with the guidance of Houston A+ Challenge.

Volunteer teams from each of Aldine ISD's five high schools knocked on doors throughout the community Aug. 26 in hopes of convincing students who've left to give school another chance.

Razo, a receptionist, volunteered for Reach Out To Dropouts after hearing about it on the radio.

"I'm not saying I'm going to be everyone's role model," said Razo, who earned her diploma last May. "But when I was young, I wish I had someone to talk to. I wish some teacher knocked on my door and asked me to come back. Some people just need that push."

When she returned to school she did it to set an example for her 2-year-old son, Adam.

"School is important," she said. "I have dreams and goals. I want to go to college. I want to become someone."

The program was worth the effort, Aldine Superintendent Nadine Kujawa said. She estimates the volunteers re-enrolled 50 students the day of the campaign.

"We are still experiencing payoff," Kujawa said. "We are still having parents call, kids call and students coming back to school."

It was the Houston Mayor's Office that invited Aldine to participate in Reach Out To Dropouts.

Kujawa said she saw the program as an opportunity to bring the Aldine community together, because it requires volunteer teams comprising district representatives, area residents and business people.

And, ultimately, Kujawa said, it had potential to help young people.

"When you weighed those factors, it became clear this would be a positive thing," she said.

Houston A+ Challenge, which promotes higher academic achievement for students, provided guidance on organizing the event and recruiting supporters.

Sometimes, it takes the entire community to make a difference, said Linda Clarke, director of education and special projects with the Houston Mayor's Office.

"We're so glad Aldine joined that effort," she said.

Tracking down the students required a lot of detective work, said LaShawn Nashville, academic advisor, Carver High School.

One girl was so moved by the volunteers' visit that she rode back with them to Carver to enroll on the spot, in her pajamas.

"She was just so excited that someone cared enough to come to her house," Nashville said. "That meant the world."