This partnership-based study identified how many middle and high school students take care of parents, siblings, and grandparents at home, via student surveys across Rhode Island public schools (N = 48,508; 46% White non-Latinx; 21% Latinx; 47% girls). Further, we investigated how students' caregiving for family related to their school engagement,…

The Connections Project (Pristawa,2014) is designed to assist school personnel in identifying students at-risk for social-emotional concerns by examining students' perceptions of connectedness with adults and peers in school. Currently used in several states, schools complete the screening measure as part of their use of the Multi-Tiered System of…

Summer learning loss has been documented in the United States since early in the 20th century. These early studies measured differences in test scores at the beginning of the summer and at the end, and discovered that students did not retain information during the summer. Studies conducted throughout the 20th century confirmed this. Later studies…

A mixed methods convergent evaluation informed the redesign of an innovative public school that uses an accelerated model to serve grades 7-9 students who have been retained in grade level and are at risk for dropping out of school. After over 25 years in operation, a shift of practices/policies away from grade retention and toward social…

This technical brief describes updates to a database of dropout prevention programs and policies in 2006/07 created by the Regional Education Laboratory (REL) Northeast and Islands and described in the Issues & Answers report, "Piloting a searchable database of dropout prevention programs in nine low-income urban school districts in the…

Postsecondary early awareness strategies are a fast-growing component of college access to attainment efforts. Broadly defined, these programs and policies encourage low-income and first-generation students to gain the information, skills, and resources they need to successfully take part in higher education. They focus on students in fifth…

Out-of-school time (OST) programs focused on older youth--specifically, youth in middle and high school--can help participants successfully navigate their adolescence and learn new skills well into their teens. OST programs can also help prepare older youth for a variety of new roles that they will assume as they enter college and the workforce.…

For children, change can be frightening, and the middle school years are a time of dramatic change for them. Young adolescents are grappling with confusing and often difficult changes in their emotions, their bodies, their schools, their schedules, and the social and academic expectations placed upon them. Middle school administrators, teachers,…

Out-of-school time (OST) programs represent a vital opportunity and resource for learning and development for children and youth. Given the potential of city-level OST initiatives to support participation, and against the national backdrop of inequitable access to quality OST programs for older youth from disadvantaged communities, The Wallace…

Adolescence is a period of rapid developmental changes. Only in the early years of childhood do individuals experience such a brisk pace of change. However, all too often, out-of-school time (OST) programs do not recognize how quickly the needs and interests of adolescents shift along with their developmental changes. Program staff know--and…

The Afterschool Alliance and MetLife Foundation are proud to celebrate a fifth round of the MetLife Foundation Afterschool Innovator Awards. For the past five years, we have collaborated to highlight the work of quality afterschool programs that support children, families and communities across the nation. This compendium is a compilation of four…

Access to a quality, affordable college education remains a cornerstone of American economic and social development. Individuals from all backgrounds need the knowledge and skills afforded by higher education to compete in an increasingly integrated--and competitive--global economy. Greater educational attainment correlates with many positive…