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Graduation coaches
to help TPS teens
By Kevin Milliken for La Prensa
Oct. 20, 2011: Toledo Public Schools students, including the
district’s young Latino population, soon will have more help to
earn a high school diploma. Graduation coaches will be
placed at schools throughout TPS to assist students in the
transition to high school, a time when research shows eighth and
ninth graders are most vulnerable to dropping out.
AmeriCorps
volunteers from the United Way of Greater Toledo will
staff the schools and work with students and their families. TPS
officials touted the project as a major tenet of the school
district’s transformation plan at a press conference in the
Woodward High School library.
“It is specifically geared to elevate the graduation rate of
Toledo Public Schools,” said Brian Murphy, TPS assistant
superintendent.
“We’ve got 15 to 20 percent of our student population who attend
our high schools but don’t finish,” said Dr. Jerome Pecko,
TPS superintendent. “That’s huge in terms of the impact that has
on the community.”
Graduation coaches will
work alongside guidance counselors and other school
professionals, identifying barriers to each student’s
attendance. The coach will then help develop and implement a
personalized graduation action plan for that student. The
strategy includes holding one-on-one or small-group coaching
sessions to provide support, help, guidance, and connection to
resources for at-risk students who might otherwise slip through
the cracks.
“Maybe the student is
staying at home to care for younger brothers and sisters and the
family needs to be connected to quality child care,” said
Michelle Davis, United Way vice president. “Maybe the
student needs tutoring but has been afraid to ask for that
assistance.”
TPS officials admitted
that many families often feel disconnected from their child’s
school. The graduation coaches’ project is an effort to
alleviate problems in the home that may affect student
attendance or lead to discipline problems.
“We have always talked
about community involvement, bringing agencies into schools.
It’s one thing to say it, it’s another to see it happen,” said
Woodward principal Emilio Ramirez, whose school has had a
two-year pilot project in place. “There is a connection between
social agencies, non-profits, and TPS and I’m glad to be part of
that.”
The academic and
attendance progress of students also will be tracked to ensure
they stay on pace to graduate in four years.
AmeriCorps workers serving
as graduation coaches are giving a year of service. While the
AmeriCorps program nationally is set up to address critical
needs in communities, the United Way locally is focusing its
program on education. Members are trained to mentor at-risk
kids, while receiving a living stipend, education award, and
professional development in exchange for their year of service.
“I’m expecting to be able
to work with these kids, inspire them, give them a ray of hope,
something to look forward to,” said graduation coach Jason
Dixon. “I think it’s important to have that support system,
those people that believe in you and constantly push you to
achieve your best. That’s what the definition of a coach is.”
“Graduation coaching is
one program that will potentially catch kids at the last
critical tipping point,” said Ms. Davis.
Long-term, TPS and United
Way officials hope the project will achieve two community-wide
results. First, a higher graduation rate may put more inner-city
youth on a path toward college, because the University of
Toledo and Owens Community College offer free tuition
to TPS students who qualify. Second, the project is aimed at
building a more well-trained workforce, which could help the
region’s economic health.
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