In this reflective essay, Alan McCullough Jr., Felton Morrell Jr., Bernard Thomas III, Vincente Waugh, and Nicholas Shubert with their teacher, Amy Donofrio, share the youth self-authorship methods that empowered them to transform their labels from "at-risk youth" to "at-hope youth leaders" in Jacksonville, Florida. After…

After the quality of a school's teachers, the quality of a school's leaders is the most influential school-based factor affecting student learning, and research indicates that leadership impacts student achievement the most in academic settings serving students who traditionally have not done well in school. In an effort to provide high-quality…

Many families in Boston, especially the immigrant ones, are unable to navigate the Boston Public Schools system and offer their children the education they could have. In this article, the author shares how the learning and support she obtained from Citizen Schools has helped her navigate through high school and in life. Citizen Schools is an…

To change American high schools, new collective imagination is needed. In an age where the word "teenager" or "adolescent" often inspires fear or frustration, leaders must overhaul the public's attitude about their high school students. In a time when many teachers believe their efforts cannot overcome poverty and other barriers to learning…