Presented at the 2013 NPEA conference by: Princeton Center for Leadership Training http://www.educational-access.org/npea_conference_speakers2013.php

1. Princeton Center for Leadership Training
Dr. Margo Ross, Senior Director
April 11, 2013

2.  Partner with schools to help create safer and more
supportive, engaging, inspiring environments
 Has served hundreds of schools since 1988 and our work
touches tens of thousands of students, educators, and
parents annually
 Highly committed to implementing effective programs in
partnership with communities that have large numbers of
economically disadvantaged youth

3.  District/School  Government Leaders
Administrators  Community-
 Teachers Based/Nonprofit Leaders
 Student Support Services  Business Leaders
Professionals  Funders
 Elementary Educators  Parents
 Middle Grades Educators  Students
 High School Educators  Who did we miss?

4. As a result of participating in this workshop, learners will be able
to:
• articulate why feeling connected to school leads to fewer
dropouts, higher grades, and reduced bullying
• appreciate the need to focus on the middle to high school
transition in efforts to improve students’ sense of school
connectedness
• understand the evidence supporting a peer group mentoring
model that enhances school connectedness for students and
eases the transition into high school for 9th graders

5. • There is a profound weakness in the support
provided to students during the transition
into high school.
• By the time they are in high school, as many
as 40 to 60 percent of all students—urban,
suburban and rural—are ―chronically
disengaged‖ from school.
• Such disengagement has dire consequences
– research consistently demonstrates that
students are most vulnerable for dropping
out of school during and immediately
following their first year of high school.
Blum, 2005; Cohen & Smerdon, 2009

6. From your experiences and observations,
what are the most significant challenges
facing students as they transition from
middle school to high school?

7. Programs that support students
throughout the transition from
middle to high school and extending
throughout the freshman and
sophomore years have the greatest
impact on keeping students engaged
and in school.

8.  Have adequate support of  Are delivered over multiple
school leadership structured sessions over
multiple years
 Develop individual social skills
 Provide adequate training and
 Are theory driven support to program facilitators
 Involve interactive teaching  Are culturally and
approaches (e.g. small group developmentally appropriate for
activities and role plays) the students they serve
 Use properly selected and  Integrate into the regular school
trained peer leaders to facilitate day
delivery of the program
 Reach all students transitioning
 Integrate other segments of the
community (e.g. family  Have adequate resources
members)

9. By leveraging the power of school-based, group mentoring by
older peers and focusing intensively on the transition from
middle to high school…
We can transform this period of heightened vulnerability into one
of significant opportunity to prevent the potentially devastating
personal and societal consequences of high school
disengagement.

10. School connectedness
- the belief by students that people in
the school care about their learning
and about them as individuals –
is an powerful protective factor in the
lives of young people and an important
prerequisite to reduced bullying, greater
academic achievement, lower dropout
rates, improved grades, fewer discipline
referrals, and fewer high-risk behaviors.
Blum & Libbey, 2004; http://www.casel.org/basics/climate.php

11. Once upon a time, we were where our students
are. Our experiences may have looked
different from theirs, or our experiences may
have looked similar. Almost across the board,
though, adolescence wasn’t—and isn’t—easy.
To help establish context for considering
programming that supports school
connectedness and ensures that students make
an effective transition into high school, let’s
begin with a quick visit back to that time and
place when we, too, were teenagers…

12. Working in groups of three, participants introduce themselves to
one another and take turns sharing responses to any one of the
following questions:
• What is one memory you have about a time in high school when
you felt strongly connected to other students?
• What is one memory you have about a time in high school when
you felt strongly disconnected from other students?
• Think back to one adult in your middle school or high school
who threw you a lifeline – this adult knew you and cared about
you, and this person’s caring made a positive difference in your
life.

13. • What patterns did we see emerge in
our memories of school connectedness
and disconnectedness?
• What might make it even harder for
today’s high school students to
experience a sense of school
connectedness?

14. Peer-to-peer group mentoring is a
straightforward, cost-effective, and evidence-
based model for:
• Enhancing school connectedness
• Easing the transition into high school
for 9th graders

15. 15 15

16. Let’s watch a brief video segment that highlights
the PGC program in Union City, New Jersey, where
students are currently immersed in mentoring
roles.
• What did you see or hear that resonated with
you most deeply?
• What school-based challenges do you think
would be addressed by a group mentoring
program that sets older students in motion with
younger students?
16 16

17. % of Ninth Grade Students who
Graduated from High School
90% 90%
81%
80% 77% 80%
67% 70%
70%
63%
60% 60%
50%
50%
Program Group Control Group
Program Group Control Group
All Students Male Students
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18. • Higher grades
• Better attendance
• Fewer discipline referrals
• Fewer instances of fighting and suspension
• Improved communication with peers and
others

19. 1. Collaboration with School Leadership: PCLT staff collaborates with
school leadership to assemble and train a school-based Stakeholder
Team.
2. Faculty Advisors: PCLT staff collaborates with the school-based
Stakeholder Team to identify, select, train, and support Faculty Advisors.
3. Peer Leaders: Faculty Advisors select and train Peer Leaders through an
out-of-school retreat and a daily, credit-bearing leadership class.
4. Weekly Outreach Sessions: Peer Leaders mentor and support younger
peers in curriculum-driven weekly sessions, carefully planned special
events, meaningful service learning projects and informally throughout
the school day and year.
5. Family Nights: Parents/caregivers participate in special family events.
6. 10th Grade Booster Sessions: Younger peers receive additional support
for a second year.
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20. The PGC curriculum uses engaging, hands-on activities to
address issues that have been shown to help reduce risk
behaviors and produce positive student outcomes, including
high school completion. Curriculum topics include:
 Sense of School Belonging  Goal Setting
 Competence in  Coping Skills
Interpersonal Relationships  Decision Making
 Conflict Resolution, Anger
 Peer Acceptance & Resisting
Management, & Violence
Peer Pressure
Prevention
 Anger Management
 Bullying & Bystander
Behavior  Stress Management
 Achievement Orientation &  Service Learning
Motivation
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22. • What is something you’ve heard or
thought about today that will stay with
you?
• What’s one next step you would like to
take back to your own school?
• For additional information about PCLT,
please contact Margo at
mross@princetonleadership.org