The Need

The Need

SALI focuses on student character and leadership development and parental involvement. This program addresses critical issues in North Texas communities. In 2010, the longitudinal dropout rate in Dallas ISD was 13.2%, and many Hispanics already lag behind their grade level in most subjects by the start of kindergarten. Hispanics remain behind in careers after school: in 2009 only 19.2% of US Latinos aged 25-34 had an associate’s degree or higher. The national average was 41.1%. About 31% of the over-25 population of Dallas does not have a high school diploma or GED, and the median household wealth of white households was 18 times that of Hispanic households in 2009. When students fall behind in school, they often never recover.

LINC North Texas believes that the family contribution to education is critical. Studies universally agree that parental involvement and student academic achievement are positively correlated. One study of more than 16,000 students even found that family variables accounted for 93% of the students’ educational achievement. A closer analysis reveals that parents often feel they do not know how to relate to their teenage children. Parents and students fall victim to relationship dropout, weakening both their families and their communities. Research shows that effective family engagement programs are partnerships between parents, school staff, and community members. LINC NT hopes to be that partnership.

Research further shows that character education programs are effective at increasing developmental assets that help students pass successfully through adolescence and prepare for a successful transition into adult years. The more assets youth experience, the more likely they are to be found in a variety of thriving behaviors, the less likely they are to be found in high-risk behaviors, and the more likely they are to overcome challenges later in life. One study found that asset levels accounted for as much as half the difference in GPAs among students.

Citations:

• Texas Education Agency. Secondary School Completion and Dropouts in Texas Public Schools, 2009-10: District and Campus Supplement. Document No. GE11 601 10. Downloaded 17 April 2012 from <http://www.tea.state.tx.us/acctres/dropcomp_index.html>
• College Board Advocacy & Policy Center. The College Completion Agenda: 2011 Progress Report Latino Edition. Downloaded 17 April 2012 from <http://completionagenda.collegeboard.org/latino/reports>
• “DISD at a Glance.” The Dallas Morning News. 24 February 2010. <http://www.dallasnews.com/s/dws/spe/2004/dallas/graphics/12_disd.pdf>.
• Kochhar, Rakesh, and Richard Fry and Paul Taylor. “Hispanic Household Wealth Fell by 66% from 2005 to 2009.” Pew Hispanic Center report, released July 26, 2011. Downloaded 30 April 2012 from <http://www.pewhispanic.org/2011/07/26/the-toll-of-the-great-recession/>
• Hoxby, Caroline. “If families matter most, where do schools fit in?” A Primer on America’s Schools, Terry M. Coe ed., 2001. Pp. 89, 96-98
• Henderson, Anne T. , & Mapp, Karen L. A New Wave of Evidence: The Impact of School, Family, and Community Connections on Student Achievement. Retrieved 20 March 2012 from http://www.sedl.org/connections/resources/evidence.pdf. Published in 2002.
• Roehlkepartain, Eugene C., Benson, Peter L., and Sesma, Arturo. Signs of Progress in Putting Children First: Developmental Assets among Youth in St. Louis Park, 1997-2001. Minneapolis, MN: Search Institute, 2003.