Massgrad Evaluation Brief - Implementation Awards, Adult Advocacy
MassGradEvaluationBriefs–ImplementationAwards
Focus:AdultAdvocates forStudent Support
August2012
INSIDE THIS ISSUE:
Introduction
TheMassGrad EvaluationBriefs area series ofpublications writtenfor participantsintheevaluation beingconducted bythe UMassDonahue Institute (UMDI). The Briefs willshare keyfindings fromevaluation sitevisits,interviews, surveys, and reports. Itisahigh priorityfortheMassachusetts Departmentof Elementaryand SecondaryEducation(ESE)thatyou receive feedbackfromthe evaluation. Yourparticipation has been veryhelpfuland greatlyappreciated.
The AdultAdvocates for Student Supportstrategyis beingutilized by12 schoolsthatreceived Implementationawards, and themanyvariationsin their approaches provide ampleopportunitiesforsharingbestpracticesandlessons learned. Some programs can alreadypointto concrete,positive outcomes ofthis work– some quantifiable, and othersbased on qualitative observations. Our conclusionsaredrawnprimarilyfrominterviews and observationsconducted during our site visits, butfundingproposals, Year2 continuation reports,andtrimester updates were alsoused.
Programs have reportedthatthe modelstheydeveloped arehelpingto keep students engaged in high schooland ontrackto graduate. Although manybest practiceshave beenidentified, thereare also obstaclesand challenges to the adult advocates work. Thisevaluation briefwillattempt to highlight some oftherelevant
issuesidentified sofar.
Forinquiries aboutthe evaluation,please contactPatricia Leeat the UMassDonahue Institute:PLee@ donahue.umassp.edu, (413)587-2402
Program Models
In its award materials, ESEdescribesthe “AdultAdvocatesforStudent Support” strategyas “two types of counseling/professionalstafftosupportpositive student outcomes through supportprevention, intervention,andrecoveryeffortsat thelocallevel:1) graduation/readiness coaches and2)reengagement/recovery coaches.Thesestaffand associated programmingassiststudentsin meetingpersonal and academic needsthrough a meaningfuland sustained personalrelationship witha trainedadult.” Bothtypes ofadultadvocates mentioned inthis definitionarebeing utilizedin awardee schools,and theyhave thefollowing wide range oftitles,job descriptions, caseloads, andprofessionalbackgrounds:
1. Graduation &PreventionCoaches (full-timeto 20hrs/wk) –These coaches have a caseload of30to 909th-and 12th-grade students, dependingonthe school.Thefull-time coaches have backgrounds in socialwork, school adjustmentcounseling, andadministration.
2. Advocate Case Workers (19 hrs/wk)Teacher Advocates (2 hrs/wk)– One schoolhas twotypes ofadvocates.The part-time case workers each work intensively with 15at-risk students.The teacheradvocates, whocanbe any staffmember (e.g., teacher,custodian, librarian), provide in-schoolsupport
to 3-4 studentsthrough advocacy, tutoring, and counseling.
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3. Graduation Coach Coordinator(6 hrs/wk)Teacher/StaffGraduation Coaches (6 hrs/wk)– Multipleschoolsareusinga model thatutilizesteachers and otherschoolpersonnelas graduation coaches who each work with 6 to 25 studentsacross grades. In mostcasesthereisalsoa coordinator, who assigns students tocoachesand monitorsthe workbeingdone.
4. Retention Intervention Specialist(part-time)– One school has astaffmember who focusesin part on retaining students bymakinghome visits and phonecalls,as wellas meetingwithstudents eitheratschooloroffcampus iftheyare absent.
5. Recovery Coaches (part-time)– One schoolhas a graduation coach who also works to recover students who have leftthe school.The primaryre-engagementstrategyhas been sendingletters home, and when studentand parents respondtotheletter, the coachcreatesindividualized plans for courseworkcompletionforthereturningstudents.Anotherschoolhad similarplansbut, dueto high demand, has allocatedtheirawardresourcesto graduation coachesinstead.
6. Community-Based Coaches (part-time)–Two districtsare partneringwith communitycenters thatare utilizing graduationand recoverycoaches. Oneof the communitycentershas arecovery teamthatconducts streetoutreach,lookingforstudentsin theirhome communities. Then the recoveryteamhelps the center’sadmissions staffdetermine whethera studentisagood fitforthe academic componentofthecenter’s program, and encourages the studentsto pursue their diploma. The othercommunitycenterprovides graduationcoachestothestudentsitserves. In addition, onehigh schoolenlisted community-based coaches in mid-yearinorderto reduce the caseloads ofschoolstaffmembers, and alsobecausetheythought communitycoaches might be more effective forstudentswho were havingdifficulty“connectinginthe schoolbuilding.” One of the communitycoacheswas a retired teacherfromthe district, and the others weretutorswho
were already workingwithstudents fromthe school.
Program Characteristics
Allawardee schools assignadultadvocatestothose studentswho are deemed athighestriskof dropout, based on factorssuch asattendance, grades, creditaccumulation,discipline problems, and motivation. With some variation across schools, the graduationcoach role generallyinvolves monitoring students andensuringthattheyare receivingthe supporttheyneedto graduate (forseniors)orto stayon trackto graduate(foryoungerstudents).
Graduation coaches meetwithstudents, setgoals, putplansand services in place for them, call families, conducthome visits, and insome cases trytorecoverstudents who have lefttheschool.The graduation coaches atone schoolcompletegoal-settingworksheets with each oftheirstudents, aprocess thatreviews grades,credits,course requirements,MCAS scores, and attendance.The process has been so successfulthatthe principalhas expanded itto includeallstudents and the guidance department.
One schoolhas held monthlyevents forallstudents thatwork with graduation coaches.The events are one totwo hourslong. Halfof the time is structured(e.g., guestspeakers,stress managementworkshops), and halfofthetime is unstructured,so studentscansocialize with theirpeersandwork with theircoaches.
Some adultadvocates supportsummertransition programs and freshman seminarsthathighlight importantissues relatedto successfulhigh schoolcompletionandthe differences betweenmiddle school and high school. One graduation coach explained,
In themiddleschoolthey can failtwo coursesand stillbe promoted, whereas when theygetto high schoolitbecomes a creditissue. So we need to doa betterjob with orientation and transition,
to helpthemdevelop a differentmentality whenthey come to high school. Alot ofthese kids, if theyfailone course theythink‘no bigdeal’, butthentheyare five credits behind and theydon’t make thatconnection untiltheyrealize, ‘Oh my goodness, Iamnot a sophomore now!’ Theyneed to understand thatyou become a sophomore when you getyour 40 creditsand soforthup the line.
Forsome schools,theroleof the graduation coachis to connectstudents to services inside andoutside of the school. Others help students whoare leavingtheschoolto find GEDprograms orcommunity programs such asJob Corps thatwillenablestudents to continue theireducation.One graduationcoach described himselfas the “gatekeeper”forleavingthe school, meaningthathe hadto connectandconsult with allstudents who wereexpressinginterestin droppingout.
Trainingemerged as animportantaspectof adultadvocateprograms, as manyadultadvocates needed skillsthataretypicallyexpected fromguidance personnel.Theyalso needed clarityabouttheirexpected roles. Some adultadvocatesreported thattheyhad participatedin valuable trainingatthe startofthe year and ongoingprofessionaldevelopmentthroughouttheyear. Otheradvocatesreportedthattheyhad
received minimaltraining.
Successes
Themajorityof adultadvocatessaid thattheybelieve theyare helpingsome studentsgraduate or make progresstowardgraduation.Mosttalked aboutthe importance ofadults buildingindividualized relationships with students,explainingthatthesetrustingrelationshipsincrease studentaccountabilityand successin school. One adultadvocate explained, “itis importantthatstudents have adults attheschool who care aboutthem, that theyhave a sense thatthey are visibleand have advocates inthebuilding, and thattheyfeelcomfortable enough to come in and stay.” Anotherteachersaid, “Itis importantforstudents to knowthatsomebodyis genuinelyinterestedin howtheyare doingin school.Thathelpsthemknowthat theyhave a placehere, andfromthatplacetheycancontinue onto success.” (Thisfindingaboutthe importance ofrelationshipsfordropout prevention wasechoed byschoolpersonnelacross allofthe Implementation award strategies.)
Aclearsuccessisthatmanyadultadvocates have become embedded with otherdropoutprevention workin theirschool,district, and/orcommunity. For example, one schoolreported thatcreditrecovery
has “taken off”attheirschool because the graduationcoaches arereferringthe students they work with to the creditrecoveryprogram. Anothergraduation coachexplained, “thejobisto followthe at-riskstudents and implementdifferent programs withinthe whole schoolto increase the graduation rates. Youcan’tjust work with your group. Youhave to work with the restof the stafftoo, so we canworksystemicallyand make change.” Anotherschool discussed the role ofthe graduationcoach assimultaneously creating connectionsto students, schoolpersonnel, and diversecommunity membersandresources.Finally, one schoolreportedthateffortsto identify at-riskstudents for extra supports were piecemealinthe past, but thatthe MassGrad fundshave enabled themto be more systematicand intentional.
One ofthe mostimportantsuccesses reportedacross schools is thatadultadvocates are helpingto keep students inschool andincrease graduation rates.One ofthe communitycenters using graduation coaches reported thattheyhave successfullyintervened in keeping50 students inschoolthis year. A recoverycoach fromanotherschoolreportedthattheprogramhas re-engaged seven students,andthatfive of themare nowontracktograduate. Acommon theme acrossinterviews wasthatstudents like having graduation coaches, and thatthe schools wish theycould providea coach foreverystudent.
Challenges
Adultadvocate programs faced challenges as well. Some said thatthe work was too time-consuming, and thatadvocates needed smallercaseloads.Thenumber ofstudentsthatinterviewees feltwasa manageable caseload varied acrossschools,fromabouttwoto six students.This also varied withthe differentscope ofthe adultadvocaterole in different programs. Some schools thatutilizedteachers as adult advocates reportedthatitisdifficultforteachers to balancetheiradultadvocate work withtheirother responsibilities duringplanningperiodsand afterschool. In one district, graduation coach teachers were onlyallowedto work with theirassigned studentsbefore and afterschool.
Themajorityof interviewees emphasizedthatstudentattendanceis an ongoingchallenge, because coaches can’twork with orbe effective with studentswho arenotin school. Severaladultadvocates expressed frustration atnotbeingable to reachand engage the studentswho do notcome to school even
afteracoach calls and/orvisits theirhomes.
Conclusions
Arange of adultadvocatemodelshave been developed byImplementationawardee schools, andthe lessonslearned fromearly implementation area potentialsource ofmutualsupportandimprovement. Adult advocates appearto have broad appealamongstudentsand schoolpersonnel,and initialreportssuggestthat supportsprovided byadultadvocates have contributedto students graduatingandstayingon trackto graduate.Theimpactofadultadvocates onstudentdropout preventionandrecovery willbefurther investigated quantitativelyduringthe course oftheMassGradevaluation.