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

Goals
A Blueprint for Success
The primary focus of The Partners Program is on four-year college graduation for program participants.
This outcome is considered to be a primary gateway to a life of self-sufficiency and giving
back to one’s community. All program activities are aligned to this goal. Measureable outcomes related
to this goal include a focus on the following questions:
Are program participants succeeding in school both academically and socially?
Are they graduating from middle and high school and from college on time and with good
grades?
Do they and their families understand the pathway to college graduation, starting in the
middle school grades?
Do they have the support that they need to navigate this path, everything from standardized
testing practice and financial aid workshops to learning college entrance requirements and
how to pack for freshman year in the dorms?
Admission & Selection
Admission decisions give priority to OUSD students, especially those who are low-income according
to federal lunch program guidelines, who are first generation to college, who are immigrants to the
US or the children of immigrants, who are from families and communities often underrepresented
on college campuses, and/or from families for whom the path to college is especially difficult. Further,
the program seeks to admit students who are highly motivated, have a positive attitude, are
hard workers, and are focused on college graduation. Most students in the program are in the middle
band of academic performance, meaning B- and C- earning students – those who are likely to fall
through the cracks of college preparation activities or are not identified as “college material” at all.
Students apply and enter the program in 6th grade and officially begin program activities in the
summer after the 6th grade. The application process is designed to keep barriers to participation low.
Students complete a one-page application of basic personal information and must attend an open
house orientation with a parent, guardian, or other caring adult (i.e., a teacher or mentor). Middle
school partners (usually the 6th grade teaching teams) fill out a very brief student evaluation while
lunch status (free, reduced, or neither) is verified by a school counselor or administrator. Grades and
test scores are not viewed at all during the process; any student who is motivated is welcome, regardless
of current academic performance.
Admitted students come primarily from three groups: about a third of students are siblings of current
or former students, a third are from the first partner middle school, and a third are from the
second partner middle school.
Educational Policy Institute 95 www.educationalpolicy.org