Beginning her 45th year in education, Hassall taught and counseled in a large, comprehensive school district before retiring in 1995. It was then she founded a school — the Boyce Campus Middle College near Pittsburgh — which served at-risk students from four local districts, allowing them to earn college credits while in high school.
The success of that program, demonstrated by a 92 percent graduation rate, led Hassall to serve on the Board of Directors and the Executive Committee of the Middle College National Consortium, which hosted retreats focused on the professional development of principals and teachers. The MCNC — an intermediary for the Gates Foundation — opened 16 early colleges and redesigned 12 middle colleges.
She became an early college consultant for Cincinnati’s KnowledgeWorks Foundation, where she helped establish three early colleges in that role before becoming an early college coach for nine such schools in Ohio.
Noted philosopher