Making Every Day Count - Teens

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Making Every Day Count: Boys & Girls Clubs’ Role in Promoting Positive Outcomes for TeensivDespite these challenges, there are several reasonswhy the positive findings from this study build astrong case for the role Boys & Girls Clubs play inteens’ lives and add to our knowledge about theimportance of the type of support Clubs provide atsuch critical junctures as the transition from middleto high school:• The study followed a large sample of youth (422)and gathered survey data from them whetheror not they continued as regular participantsin the Club—or even participated at all. 6 Theresponse rate was 76.3 percent on the follow-upsurvey, which was administered approximately30 months after baseline data were collected.Therefore, the outcomes are based on 322 youth,including those who were not involved in theClubs after the beginning of the study. Priorstudies of outcomes that have drawn conclusionsbased solely on youth who remain in the Clubsand are present on the day of the follow-up surveyoffer a more biased and narrower perspectiveof experiences.• The study is able to link attendance datawith survey data to examine the relationshipbetween participation and outcomes and compareoutcomes for youth with greater and lessparticipation. 7• The in-depth qualitative interviews with ninthgraders and staff provide data that allow formore detailed and nuanced exploration of howthe Clubs achieve their goals, as well as the challengesthey face.Thus, the findings from this study provide importantinformation about how these young peoplechanged over time, the relationship between participationin the Clubs and the outcomes being examined,and the youth’s and staff’s perceptions of howthe Clubs influence teens’ lives.FindingsThe results of the evaluation are informative forfunders and policymakers interested in supportingprograms that effectively garner the types of outcomesdescribed in this study. They are also helpfulfor practitioners who are interested in developingstrong programs that can attract teens and engagethem in positive experiences that promote healthydevelopment. The findings address the question,“Do Boys & Girls Clubs ‘work’?”—and suggest that,on many levels, the approach that Clubs take withteens is working. The following pages summarizethe findings and conclusions of the full report,which is available at www.ppv.org.The TeensThe 322 teens followed over the two-and-a-half-yeartime frame of the evaluation reflect a group ofyouth faced with economic challenges and potentiallysignificant life stressors that place them at riskof not achieving healthy outcomes. The teens in thesample are ethnically and racially diverse and primarilylow-income, similar to the overall populationserved by Clubs nationwide. The youth, a majorityof whom had been involved in the Club for morethan two years at the time the study began, typicallylived relatively close to the Club where they participated.On the baseline survey in Winter 2006, theytended to report performing fairly well in schooland having engaged in few risk behaviors. Thus, thestudy illuminates the extent to which the Clubs supportthese youth in maintaining a positive trajectoryand keep them out of many of the troubles thatbegin to surface as youth move into high school.Teens’ Participation and EngagementSurvey and attendance data reveal a picture ofteens who go to Clubs relatively frequently, evenas they transition from middle to high school; whofeel safer at the Clubs than they do in other placeswhere they spend time; and who feel engaged bythe Clubs’ activities, opportunities and interpersonalrelationships. These elements come togetherto support the outcomes Clubs strive to achieve.Attendance data indicate a relatively regular groupof Club attendees; these data also show that attendancelessens as youth move from middle schoolto high school. Importantly, even those who attendother out-of-school-time activities feel connected tothe Club. Over the 30 months of the study, approximatelyhalf the youth (52 percent) attended morethan 122 days (roughly once a week), with almosta third (30 percent) attending 244 or more days(roughly two to three times a week) and close to13 percent attending 366 or more days (roughly3 to 4 days per week). Although the frequency ofattendance was significantly lower, on average, for
Executive Summaryvthe youth when they reached the ninth and tenthgrades (11.8 days from January to March 2008, comparedto 25.1 days from January to March 2006—when these youth were in the seventh and eighthgrades), older youth were still attending about oneday a week on average, compared with about twodays per week when they were younger. About twothirds (67 percent) reported having been to aClub in the four months prior to the final survey,with 86 percent indicating they plan to go back toa Club, even if they have not been in a while.Different teens reported using the Club in differentways: For some youth, their only out-of-schoolactivities were at the Club, while many combinedtheir Club activities with other pastimes. A commontheme described by participants was that, regardlessof how much they used the Club, they felt connectedto the Club and felt that even if they werenot using it right now, they could go back.Four factors seemed most significant in contributingto sustained teen attendance. Our findingsindicate that teens were likely to participate withgreater frequency during the transition from middleto high school if: 1) the Clubs fully engagedthem in a variety of activities; 2) their friends cameto the Club; 3) they were involved in leadershiproles there; and 4) they had first become involvedin the Clubs as preteens or even younger.Clubs use an intentional approach to workingwith teens and keeping them involved. The Clubsengaged teens by offering a broad array of programmingand other opportunities, along with timeand a place to hang out with friends, other positivepeers and supportive adults. All of the Clubs in thestudy have a separate space for teens, either in theform of a teen-only room or a larger teen-only center.And the Clubs are open long hours after schooland over the summer months, allowing the teens toattend at the times that are best for them.Clubs are also staffed in a way that provides positiveadult supports for youth. Almost all of the Clubs inour study had at least one staff person whose timewas devoted specifically to working with teens, andall of the Clubs had several staff who interacted withteens on a regular basis. In addition, Clubs’ arrayof programming is intended to attract youth witha variety of interests and expose them to new anddiverse activities that they may not otherwise havethe opportunity to experience.Teens rated the Club safer in comparison to otherplaces where they spend time. Among youth whocompleted the final survey, 79 percent rated thelevel of safety at the Club as 8 or higher on a scaleof 1 to 10, where 10 is the most favorable. By comparison,only 54 percent rated the safety of theirschool this favorably, and only 38 percent had arating that high for the neighborhood surroundingthe Club. Teens describe the Clubs as providing animportant space for them, where they can comfortablyhang out and stay away from unhealthy choicesand negative peer pressure.Teens reported participating in a wide range of activitiesat the Clubs and getting involved in leadershiproles. Among those who had been to the Club in thepast four months, over half (56 percent) reportedparticipating in either four or five different categoriesof activities (informal activities, athletic programs,academic programs, other formal activities,and paid and volunteer work). Among their activities,about three quarters reported using technologysuch as computers, video or digital music for fun(74 percent) or for schoolwork (71 percent); abouttwo thirds reported playing sports (68 percent);46 percent reported doing arts and crafts activities; athird (33 percent) attended a class in drama, danceor performing arts; and about a third (36 percent)reported participating in specific leadership programming.In addition, 82 percent of those who hadbeen to the Club in the past year reported participatingin at least one leadership role at the Club (suchas helping in the office, serving on a youth councilor leading an activity) during that time, and half participatedin three or more such roles.Teens also reported receiving positive opportunitiesat the Club and high levels of support fromtheir peers. Almost all of the youth said there was atleast one supportive peer (93 percent) at the Club,and that the Club was a place where there was peercooperation (95 percent). The youth also reportedthat the Club was a place where there were opportunitiesto develop skills (90 percent), where theyhad fun (91 percent) and where they felt a sense ofbelonging (91 percent).
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Page 5 and 6: Executive Summary
Page 7: Executive SummaryiiiGiven the incre
Page 11 and 12: Executive SummaryviiThe qualitative
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Page 15: Executive Summaryxi6 Respondents we
Page 18 and 19: Introduction 3their programming to
Page 20 and 21: Introduction 5from each of the 10 C
Page 22 and 23: The Teens in the StudyChapter II
Page 24 and 25: The Teens in the Study 9Table 1Demo
Page 26 and 27: The Teens in the Study 11them less
Page 28 and 29: Club Participation and Teens’ Out
Page 48 and 49: Conclusions and Implications 33The
Page 50 and 51: Conclusions and Implications 35Surv
Page 52 and 53: Conclusions and Implications 37Time
Page 54 and 55: Conclusions and Implications 39Fina
Page 56 and 57: Endnotes and References 41did not,
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Endnotes and References 43Reference
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Appendices
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Appendices 47Table A.2Number of Tee
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Appendices 49Appendix B:Youth Inter
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Appendices 51Table B.2Comparison of
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Appendices 53• Aggression—Three
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Appendices 55Table D.2Comparison of
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Appendices 57Table D.4Participation
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Appendices 59Table E.1Relationship
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