PATHWAYS TO ADULT SUCCESS
2022-23 SOLUTION FORUMS
The Pathways to Adult Success Solution Forum Series, hosted by the Everyone Graduates Center at the Johns Hopkins University School of Education, addresses COVID-19 and social justice challenges. These forums provide insight into some of the innovative solutions that PAS Learning Community members are developing to enable students to overcome various barriers to school success in these challenging times.
ENHANCING OPPORTUNITIES AND SUPPORTS FOR MIDDLE AND HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS
February 15, 2023
This Solutions Forum featured two 2021-22 design challenge recipients:
~ Frances Dumas-Hines, Evansville-Vanderburgh School Corporation, “Exposure and Opportunity for Advanced Coursework for Underrepresented Middle School Students”
~ Abby Kaiser and Daniel Gray, Uplift Education, “A Comprehensive, Integrated Early Warning Indicator Tracking System”
Presenters spotlighted accomplishments from their ongoing projects that give middle and high school students the support and preparation they need for success in postsecondary pathways.
PANDEMIC INNOVATIONS
January 19, 2023
The COVID-19 pandemic brought enormous loss, suffering, and upheaval in our society, particularly our educational system. We cannot and must not minimize its losses. Yet that disruption also unleashed exceptional creativity and flexibility among educators, students, and families.
Pathways to Adult Success, a learning community of educators, academics, and non-profit partners created through the Everyone Graduates Center of the Johns Hopkins School of Education, has been working since 2017 to develop systems, resources, and guidance to help more young people graduate from high school prepared to move forward into higher education or other postsecondary career pathways. The learning community identified four crucial areas to address to further this goal:
~ STUDENT SUCCESS SYSTEMS (aka early warning systems) in which school adults monitor and address students’ individual data in the ABCs of Attendance, Behavior, and Course performance, to keep them on track for graduation and postsecondary success
~ COMMUNITY COLLABORATIONS across sectors (school, non-profit, community) and levels (K12 through higher ed) to help students thrive
~ NAVIGATIONS, GUIDANCE, AND AWARENESS: helping students and their families understand academic and career opportunities and options, so they can chart a path that prepares them for a fulfilling future
~ DATA: compiling, analyzing, and sharing data to inform, evaluate, and adjust initiatives that support young people
As we seek to turn the page on COVID’s painful effects, we’ve learned many things worth keeping and adapting to the needs of the post-COVID world. Each area saw exciting initiatives emerge that will inform best practices for years to come. In this Solutions Forum, Bob Balfanz highlighted some of these innovations that respond to young people’s ever-evolving needs and offer them new access to opportunities for postsecondary success.
SHARED RESOURCES
SYSTEMS TO SUPPORT HIGH SCHOOLERS’ TRANSITIONS TO COLLEGE AND CAREER
November 15, 2022
During this Solutions Forum, two design challenge recipients spotlighted accomplishments from their ongoing projects:
~ Rich Harrison, Lighthouse Community Public Schools, “Addressing College Persistence and Income Inequity: Developing Innovators and Entrepreneurs in East Oakland”
~ Bryan DeFoney, Philadelphia Education Fund, “College Access Toolkit: Building a structured, proactive plan for high school students.”
SHARED RESOURCE
Philadelphia Education Fund’s College Access Toolkit
PEF works to instill in students a sense of their own potential, to show them the opportunities of a college education, and to help them develop the skills they’ll need to be successful. This College Access Toolkit is a year-long checklist for students to use to help them stay on track as they seek postsecondary opportunities.
START THE SCHOOL YEAR RIGHT: SCALING SCHOOL-COMMUNITY COLLABORATION FOR STUDENT SUCCESS
October 4, 2022
We all know how powerful school-community collaborations can be… but how do you scale and coordinate them to address the needs of thousands of students in dozens of schools?
In this Solutions Forum, we heard the experiences of two organizations—a nonprofit and a large urban school district—that are seeking to do just that.
Presenters included:
~ Ashley Seiler (Big Brothers Big Sisters of Eastern Missouri), “Scaling Student Support: Coordinating Collaboration Among Multiple Schools and Community Partners.”
~ Sophia Rudisill Holmes (Baltimore City Public Schools), “Mentoring Matters: Seeking a Supportive Adult Relationship for Every Child.”