A BluePrint for Success: Case Studies of Successful - Educational ...

A Blueprint for Success
gram manuals, there is a standardized process and protocols for data collection at the national level
that is non-negotiable at each HYI site to ensure that there is comparable data from site to site.
College & University Partnerships
Since many of the students participating in HYI are the first in their family to attend college, the
summer program is held on a university campus. Students experience dorm rooms and roommates,
eat in the university cafeteria, and attend workshops in college classrooms. Often, students come to
campus intimidated and leave campus feeling like they belong on a college campus. This mental shift
assists students in overcoming the perceived barrier that college “isn’t for them.” The HYI summer
kick-off program is hosted on eight university campuses across the country each year. HYI has established
partnerships with many of the host institutions including Arizona State University, Fresno
State University, Santa Clara University, Southern Methodist University, Virginia State University,
Towson University, and University of New Mexico. University partners assist the program in a variety
of ways, including free or discounted use of facilities, assistance from university staff, collaborations
on proposals, program planning committee volunteers, near-peer mentor recruitment, guaranteed
scholarships for alumni of the program, and year-round program initiatives.
Partnerships with universities also allow for on-campus follow-up programming coordinated by
HCF staff and volunteers and the opportunity to invite parents and students back to campus. Additionally,
partner institutions work with HYI to bring students into other programs that the institution
or the student groups are running on campus. HYI builds partnerships that are sustainable and
successful because they are mutually beneficial to HYI and the university.
In addition to the primary partner institutions, HYI runs a College, Career, and Community Resource
Fair at each program site, bringing an average of 30 institutions to the event. College admissions
counselors and financial aid officers from a variety of institutions teach workshops, such as how
to write a strong essay, how to pay for college, and how to apply to college.
Evidence of Success
An in-depth study of the Silicon Valley site found that the portion of students who self-reported
awareness of financial aid and other ‘college-going’ aspects typically doubled between the summer
event pre- and post-tests. Further, the summer event greatly increased students’ self-reporting of intentions
to attend college and belief that “college is for them.”
Additionally, the 2011 survey of program alumni – across all HYI sites nationally, found that 94
percent of respondents agreed with the statement, “As a direct result of my involvement with the
Hispanic Youth Institute (or HYS), I encouraged my friends or family members to go to college.”
While the response rate on the alumni survey is lower than desired (18 percent), survey findings
seem to indicate a successful program. Regarding “highest educational goal,” 36 percent indicated a
Educational Policy Institute 87 www.educationalpolicy.org