The document provides an implementation report for the Youth Opportunity Pass program in San Diego from 2013-2014. It discusses the background and purpose of the program, which provides free bus passes to low-income high school students. It outlines the program scope, budget, implementation process, evaluation factors used to assess the program, and successes and challenges experienced. Key points included distributing around 850 bus passes across 4 high schools, a budget of $359,000 from multiple funding sources, and evaluation of how the passes impacted students' comfort with transit, mobility, safety, academic achievement, and access to opportunities. The report concludes with recommendations to improve the program for future years.
The document describes the waterfall model of software development. It begins by listing the presenters and defining sequential and incremental software development models. It then discusses the waterfall model in more detail, describing it as a linear sequential process where each phase must be completed before the next begins. The document outlines the history, use cases, diagram, phases and advantages/disadvantages of the waterfall model.
The Strategic Twin Counties Education Partnership — STEP for short — is a unique initiative between several stakeholder groups in Edgecombe and Nash counties.
The Central Student Government at the University of Michigan released its 2012-2013 Annual Report. The report outlines the accomplishments of the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial branches of CSG over the past year. Key initiatives included improving the campus experience for students, promoting entrepreneurship, reforming CSG, making U-M more inclusive, supporting graduate students, uniting student governments, and focusing on sustainability, social justice, and campus-wide events. The Executive Branch report provides details on over 30 projects and accomplishments across various policy areas.
SMC Sustainable Transportation Plan_FINAL (2)Grant Jean
The document provides a summary of Santa Monica College's (SMC) 2012 Sustainable Transportation Plan. The plan aims to reduce barriers to education by decreasing student commute times and costs through promoting sustainable transit. It also seeks to reduce traffic congestion and environmental impacts. Recent accomplishments that helped achieve these goals include the successful "Any Line, Any Time" program with Big Blue Bus and annual transportation surveys. The plan was developed based on recommendations from the SMC Facilities Master Plan to adopt comprehensive transportation demand management strategies.
This document provides an overview and best practices for Walking School Bus programs. It discusses marketing strategies, developing partnerships, site management, walking routes, risk management, supplies, and future directions. The UCF Walking School Bus program grew from 3 sites serving 100 students to 9 sites serving nearly 500 students across 3 counties. Key aspects included a multi-pronged marketing approach, strategic partnerships, volunteer management and communication, thorough safety protocols, and providing necessary supplies to sites. Future recommendations include further addressing school district liability concerns and connecting with more urban schools.
The UCF Walking School Bus program was founded in 2013 with funding from the Florida Department of Transportation. It grew from serving 100 students across two counties to serving nearly 500 elementary students across three counties through nine school sites and 13 walking routes. The program successfully implemented a marketing strategy using a logo, photos, print materials and social media to promote safety. It also built partnerships with organizations focused on children's health and safety. A volunteer management system utilizing online enrollment and texting helped oversee the walking routes. Safety protocols were developed including vest, t-shirts, backpacks and training to ensure children's safety. Future recommendations include addressing school district liability, connecting with more urban schools, and developing a regional Safe Routes to School authority
The document summarizes King County Metro Transit's "In Motion" program, which applies community-based social marketing techniques to encourage individuals to reduce single-occupancy vehicle trips and increase use of alternative transportation. The program focuses on engaging residents at the neighborhood level rather than just working with employers. It has led to reported decreases in driving alone of 24-50% and increases in transit ridership of 20-50% across four neighborhoods. The program aims to develop an easily replicable model for changing travel behavior and increasing use of existing transportation infrastructure.
The document provides an overview of the 2013 community assessment conducted by the Community Action Commission of Erie, Huron & Richland Counties (CACEHR). It summarizes the demographics and needs of the three counties through data collection including a community survey. Key findings include high rates of poverty, low educational attainment, and a need for job training, affordable childcare, and youth programs. CACEHR will use these results to guide its programming and address the priority needs of the community.
The document describes the waterfall model of software development. It begins by listing the presenters and defining sequential and incremental software development models. It then discusses the waterfall model in more detail, describing it as a linear sequential process where each phase must be completed before the next begins. The document outlines the history, use cases, diagram, phases and advantages/disadvantages of the waterfall model.
The Strategic Twin Counties Education Partnership — STEP for short — is a unique initiative between several stakeholder groups in Edgecombe and Nash counties.
The Central Student Government at the University of Michigan released its 2012-2013 Annual Report. The report outlines the accomplishments of the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial branches of CSG over the past year. Key initiatives included improving the campus experience for students, promoting entrepreneurship, reforming CSG, making U-M more inclusive, supporting graduate students, uniting student governments, and focusing on sustainability, social justice, and campus-wide events. The Executive Branch report provides details on over 30 projects and accomplishments across various policy areas.
SMC Sustainable Transportation Plan_FINAL (2)Grant Jean
The document provides a summary of Santa Monica College's (SMC) 2012 Sustainable Transportation Plan. The plan aims to reduce barriers to education by decreasing student commute times and costs through promoting sustainable transit. It also seeks to reduce traffic congestion and environmental impacts. Recent accomplishments that helped achieve these goals include the successful "Any Line, Any Time" program with Big Blue Bus and annual transportation surveys. The plan was developed based on recommendations from the SMC Facilities Master Plan to adopt comprehensive transportation demand management strategies.
This document provides an overview and best practices for Walking School Bus programs. It discusses marketing strategies, developing partnerships, site management, walking routes, risk management, supplies, and future directions. The UCF Walking School Bus program grew from 3 sites serving 100 students to 9 sites serving nearly 500 students across 3 counties. Key aspects included a multi-pronged marketing approach, strategic partnerships, volunteer management and communication, thorough safety protocols, and providing necessary supplies to sites. Future recommendations include further addressing school district liability concerns and connecting with more urban schools.
The UCF Walking School Bus program was founded in 2013 with funding from the Florida Department of Transportation. It grew from serving 100 students across two counties to serving nearly 500 elementary students across three counties through nine school sites and 13 walking routes. The program successfully implemented a marketing strategy using a logo, photos, print materials and social media to promote safety. It also built partnerships with organizations focused on children's health and safety. A volunteer management system utilizing online enrollment and texting helped oversee the walking routes. Safety protocols were developed including vest, t-shirts, backpacks and training to ensure children's safety. Future recommendations include addressing school district liability, connecting with more urban schools, and developing a regional Safe Routes to School authority
The document summarizes King County Metro Transit's "In Motion" program, which applies community-based social marketing techniques to encourage individuals to reduce single-occupancy vehicle trips and increase use of alternative transportation. The program focuses on engaging residents at the neighborhood level rather than just working with employers. It has led to reported decreases in driving alone of 24-50% and increases in transit ridership of 20-50% across four neighborhoods. The program aims to develop an easily replicable model for changing travel behavior and increasing use of existing transportation infrastructure.
The document provides an overview of the 2013 community assessment conducted by the Community Action Commission of Erie, Huron & Richland Counties (CACEHR). It summarizes the demographics and needs of the three counties through data collection including a community survey. Key findings include high rates of poverty, low educational attainment, and a need for job training, affordable childcare, and youth programs. CACEHR will use these results to guide its programming and address the priority needs of the community.
The document summarizes the mid-year site visit process for programs funded by the Chenango United Way. Site visits are conducted each July/August to evaluate programs' progress in achieving their proposed outcomes. A review panel uses a standardized rubric to assess programs on metrics like outcomes alignment, budget explanations, and revisions from initial proposals. Site visits provide feedback to help programs improve and determine 15% of funding for the next year. Challenges and successes of several programs are described to illustrate the impacts of funding on the local community's education, health, and financial stability.
The annual report summarizes Ohio's Ohio Means Internships & Co-ops (OMIC) program for 2013-2014. It describes that over 2,000 students were hired as interns or co-ops through the program, with 66% being first-time experiences. Over 800 businesses participated in the program, with 55% being new partners. The report outlines student and business participation data, expenditures, wages earned, scholarships awarded, job placements, and demographics. It evaluates performance metrics and impact on regional economies and indicates strategy for future rounds of funding.
1. A strong statewide college success initiative for foster youth in New York would provide comprehensive financial aid to cover all tuition and living expenses, as well as on-campus support services including advising, tutoring, assistance with housing and employment, and an emergency fund.
2. The program is estimated to cost $8.6 million annually at full capacity to support 1,216 students each year, but would yield $28.2 million in fiscal benefits to the state over the lifetimes of those students from increased tax revenue and lower public costs due to higher education levels.
3. Key components of the program include pre-college informational resources, a summer transition program, designated advisors, and a simplified
Mobile money options to facilitate payment of incentives in Senegal’s RBF pro...HFG Project
USAID’s Health Finance & Governance (HFG) project received core funding to identify promising applications of mobile money within health systems and provide technical assistance at the country level to support their development. At the request of Senegal’s RBF program, with concurrence from the USAID mission in Senegal, HFG’s mobile money team conducted an assessment in Senegal to explore options for integrating mobile money into the RBF program. The team sought to discover how integrating mobile money might both strengthen RBF operations and promote broader uptake of mobile money use through diffusion within the health system. Delivering RBF payments via mobile money can expose recipients to the process and value of mobile money and potentially stimulate demand for additional mobile money services within the broader community and particularly within the health sector. This paper explores opportunities and barriers and makes recommendations for a small-scale pilot to test mobile money in the RBF program.
The Annual Sustainability Report: We challenge ourselves to make a difference!Cognizant
Keep Challenging! At Cognizant, we believe that is the way to drive progress.
We help leading global businesses challenge old ways of working in a world being transformed by new technologies, demographic and market shifts and global competition. And we challenge ourselves—to devote our talent, expertise and passion to making a difference in education, human potential and the environment.
We have celebrated many successes in education, human potential and the environment and will keep challenging ourselves to aim higher — and do more — for our communities, society and planet.
Read our fourth annual sustainability report, "Challenging ourselves to make a difference" , which documents the policies, practices & performances implemented in the year ended December 31, 2013.
This proposal requests $97,000 from [Organization Name] to launch a new education program called Reality 101 at Brown Middle School in Atlanta, GA. The program aims to improve the academic performance and social development of 100 at-risk middle school students through character education, project-based learning, and community partnerships. It will be implemented in 5 phases over 2 years beginning in Fall 2011.
This document is a work report submitted by Colin Dunn detailing two projects completed during a cooperative education term at the University of Waterloo's Marketing and Digital Communications department. The first project discussed is a United Way fundraising campaign where Dunn created a marketing plan that utilized social media and events to increase donations and participation. The campaign was successful in doubling donations from the previous year. The second project was developing an athletics marketing plan to increase student and community engagement with university sports. The plan proposed tactics like featuring student athletes on social media. While the full effects were not seen during the term, parts of the plan were adopted by the athletics department. Overall, the report recommends creating detailed marketing plans to support large projects and initiatives.
This document outlines a program evaluation for a transitional care program. It discusses using a mixed methods approach, gathering both quantitative and qualitative data to evaluate the program. The data will be analyzed and used to develop recommendations to improve or continue the program. Interviews, surveys, and focus groups will provide information on how well the program is operating and its level of success. The evaluation findings will be used by various stakeholders to refine strategies and guide effective service delivery.
Economic Cost-Benefit Assessment of Int'l Educational ProgramMark Chesney
The document summarizes a cost-benefit analysis of a proposed higher education project in Mauritius. The project aims to increase enrollment in graduate programs to produce more skilled workers and revive the country's competitiveness. An economic analysis finds that engineering and MBA degrees would provide positive net present value to society through increased wages, while PhDs would incur more costs than benefits. A financial analysis also finds the project viable due to incremental income benefits outweighing costs. However, a sensitivity analysis shows the project's net present value could become negative under different scenarios. In conclusion, the analysis properly accounts for costs, benefits, and uncertainties, but could have discussed broader economic impacts in more detail.
The quarterly report summarizes activities of the Alif Ailaan project in District Jamshoro from April to June 2015. Key activities included:
- Organizing exposure visits for media journalists to project areas which resulted in media coverage of the project.
- Conducting UC Parent Ittehad meetings to mobilize communities around demanding education rights.
- Holding meetings with Village Organizations and School Management Committees to discuss enrollment drives and issues in local schools.
- Collecting and analyzing enrollment data which showed an increase in enrollment, especially of girls, in target union councils compared to previous years.
The report concludes that community mobilization activities were effective in raising awareness about education rights and increasing
Our Life’s Discovery 2 April 27, 2015
Our Life’s Discovery 3 April 27, 2015
Genesis Zapata
SOM 301 Lab 206
April 27, 2015
Date: April 27, 2015
To: Steve Jones, CSR Program Director
From: Genesis Zapata, Discovery Communications Marketer
Subject: Our Life’s Discovery Tutoring Program
During our Creating Change seminar you gave us all a challenge to create a new Corporate Social Responsibility program that would benefit our local Silver Spring, MD community as well as Discovery Communications. With the achievement gap affecting minorities in Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS), Discovery should consider utilizing its educational products and services towards an after school employee volunteer tutoring program for struggling students. A program such as this one would not only help these students but it will also give Discovery a competitive advantage as well as favorable publicity within the community. The following investigation and examination indicates how such a project could be organized.
Achievement Gap
In the last decade MCPS has made many strides to close the achievement gap between minorities and their fellow white/asian students. The MCPS achievement gap is closely related to a student’s ethnicity, race and income level. The MCPS system is divided between its advanced high schools where White and Asian students attend; and its low-scoring ranked minority high schools. Most of these low performing schools are located in Silver Spring, Md. According to the findings of the County Council’s Office of Legislative Oversight found in MCPS website, “Since 2010, the economic, racial and ethnic stratification of students among MCPS high schools has increased . . . the achievement gap between high- and low-poverty high schools has widened [since 2008] ” (p. 9). Achieving as well as maintaining high grades in these schools is increasingly harder for struggling students of all walks of life, leading several students to drop out and forgo continuing their education.
Nevertheless MCPS states on their website, they will narrow the gap by adding more teachers. As well as decrease classroom sizes specifically in high schools [where there is more need], this will allow a more focused attention to students who are experiencing difficulty in school (p.1). Under these circumstances, creating an after school-tutoring program would be most beneficial to the community. Together with focusing MCPS’s resources on failing students, we can increase MCPS’s chances of lowering the achievement gap. Correspondingly, struggling students will experience a sense of community through our program as well as giving them the confidence needed to engage in becoming active participants in furthering their education.
Discovery Program Initiation
Undoubtedly there is a substantial amount of work ahead of MCPS, but Disco.
The Earn-A-Bike Co-op seeks to increase self-empowerment and community engagement among low-income youth by operating a community bicycle repair shop. The shop provides equipment and expertise to facilitate affordable, hands-on bicycle maintenance and repair activities. Surveys of participants indicate the program has been successful in changing lives and fostering new skills, but limitations in time and data prevent determining conclusively if the program directly causes these outcomes or if other factors contribute. The evaluation aims to assist future development and assess the program's impact, but a formal report of metrics and outcomes has not yet been provided to the Board of Directors.
A team of University of Michigan students received a $5,000 grant to research the student debt problem and develop a solution. They interviewed over 100 students to understand factors influencing their college and major choices, as well as their financial situations. Based on this research, the team created a web application called "Dough" to improve student loan literacy. Dough provides personalized information and tools to help students understand how their borrowing decisions impact long-term financial burden and credit. The goal is to reduce student debt and default rates.
The Kansas City Public Schools 2013-2014 Communications Plan outlines strategies to better engage the community in supporting increased student achievement. The plan focuses on communicating a clear message about preparing students to be college, career, and workforce ready. It aims to build voice around this message in all public relations and marketing efforts. Key objectives include communicating to support student achievement, encouraging community and staff engagement, enabling two-way communication, and taking advantage of opportunities to communicate at the grassroots level. The plan details tactics like highlighting a school each week, developing district report cards, and conveying daily success stories to achieve these objectives and increase engagement.
PAISA is a citizen-led effort in India that aims to improve transparency in government expenditures and public participation in local service delivery. It does this through collecting expenditure data from schools using citizen volunteers and presenting it in a way that is easy for citizens to understand. It also trains "fiscal detectives" through a two-year course to monitor expenditures and demand accountability. Some of PAISA's results include government recognition of the need for real-time expenditure data and greater awareness of government finances among students.
PAISA is a citizen-led effort in India that aims to improve transparency in government expenditures and public participation in local service delivery. It does this through collecting expenditure data from schools using citizen volunteers and presenting it in a way that is easy for citizens to understand. It also trains "fiscal detectives" through a two-year course to monitor expenditures and demand accountability. Some of PAISA's results include government recognition of the need for real-time expenditure data and greater awareness of government finances among students.
This document provides a project charter and plan for improving the affordability of higher education in Michigan. The project aims to lower costs for students through three approaches: educating students about funding options via a scholarship search engine; decreasing costs per student through curriculum acceptance policies; and increasing funding via business incorporation programs. Key milestones include developing the project scope, plans, and documents by February 2015; obtaining stakeholder approval by April 2015; and conducting research and analysis from April to June 2015. The preliminary budget totals $2.11 million, with the largest expenses going towards the scholarship search engine and data storage/organization. Risks include potential delays, lack of stakeholder buy-in, and increased costs.
University of Lagos Students Assembly (U.S.A) Orientation booklet containing a compilation of #MEET_USA campaign posts to educate the everyone about U.S.A constitution, members and project achievements, since 2014.
A research report by ITS, commissioned by Greener Journeys in partnership with the UK Department for Transport, highlighting the role played by the bus in driving jobs and economic prosperity.
The research, Buses and the Economy II, conducted by Professor Peter Mackie and Dr Dan Johnson, investigates the link between bus services and the wider economy, including access to jobs, shopping and leisure facilities, and in wider social cohesion.
www.greenerjourneys.com/2014/07/buses-economy-ii
www.its.leeds.ac.uk/research/themes/economicappraisal
The document discusses a project between community colleges and Walmart Foundation to help move low-income individuals into middle-skill jobs. It provides an overview of the project goals, outcomes, and individual college programs. The key points are:
1) The project aimed to provide training and credentials to low-income individuals to obtain middle-skill jobs and close the gap between education levels and available jobs.
2) Across 12 community colleges, the project exceeded its goals by serving nearly 13,000 individuals, awarding over 6,800 credentials, and placing over 2,200 individuals in middle-skill jobs.
3) Individual college programs varied but focused on providing education, training, job readiness support, and partnerships with
The document summarizes the mid-year site visit process for programs funded by the Chenango United Way. Site visits are conducted each July/August to evaluate programs' progress in achieving their proposed outcomes. A review panel uses a standardized rubric to assess programs on metrics like outcomes alignment, budget explanations, and revisions from initial proposals. Site visits provide feedback to help programs improve and determine 15% of funding for the next year. Challenges and successes of several programs are described to illustrate the impacts of funding on the local community's education, health, and financial stability.
The annual report summarizes Ohio's Ohio Means Internships & Co-ops (OMIC) program for 2013-2014. It describes that over 2,000 students were hired as interns or co-ops through the program, with 66% being first-time experiences. Over 800 businesses participated in the program, with 55% being new partners. The report outlines student and business participation data, expenditures, wages earned, scholarships awarded, job placements, and demographics. It evaluates performance metrics and impact on regional economies and indicates strategy for future rounds of funding.
1. A strong statewide college success initiative for foster youth in New York would provide comprehensive financial aid to cover all tuition and living expenses, as well as on-campus support services including advising, tutoring, assistance with housing and employment, and an emergency fund.
2. The program is estimated to cost $8.6 million annually at full capacity to support 1,216 students each year, but would yield $28.2 million in fiscal benefits to the state over the lifetimes of those students from increased tax revenue and lower public costs due to higher education levels.
3. Key components of the program include pre-college informational resources, a summer transition program, designated advisors, and a simplified
Mobile money options to facilitate payment of incentives in Senegal’s RBF pro...HFG Project
USAID’s Health Finance & Governance (HFG) project received core funding to identify promising applications of mobile money within health systems and provide technical assistance at the country level to support their development. At the request of Senegal’s RBF program, with concurrence from the USAID mission in Senegal, HFG’s mobile money team conducted an assessment in Senegal to explore options for integrating mobile money into the RBF program. The team sought to discover how integrating mobile money might both strengthen RBF operations and promote broader uptake of mobile money use through diffusion within the health system. Delivering RBF payments via mobile money can expose recipients to the process and value of mobile money and potentially stimulate demand for additional mobile money services within the broader community and particularly within the health sector. This paper explores opportunities and barriers and makes recommendations for a small-scale pilot to test mobile money in the RBF program.
The Annual Sustainability Report: We challenge ourselves to make a difference!Cognizant
Keep Challenging! At Cognizant, we believe that is the way to drive progress.
We help leading global businesses challenge old ways of working in a world being transformed by new technologies, demographic and market shifts and global competition. And we challenge ourselves—to devote our talent, expertise and passion to making a difference in education, human potential and the environment.
We have celebrated many successes in education, human potential and the environment and will keep challenging ourselves to aim higher — and do more — for our communities, society and planet.
Read our fourth annual sustainability report, "Challenging ourselves to make a difference" , which documents the policies, practices & performances implemented in the year ended December 31, 2013.
This proposal requests $97,000 from [Organization Name] to launch a new education program called Reality 101 at Brown Middle School in Atlanta, GA. The program aims to improve the academic performance and social development of 100 at-risk middle school students through character education, project-based learning, and community partnerships. It will be implemented in 5 phases over 2 years beginning in Fall 2011.
This document is a work report submitted by Colin Dunn detailing two projects completed during a cooperative education term at the University of Waterloo's Marketing and Digital Communications department. The first project discussed is a United Way fundraising campaign where Dunn created a marketing plan that utilized social media and events to increase donations and participation. The campaign was successful in doubling donations from the previous year. The second project was developing an athletics marketing plan to increase student and community engagement with university sports. The plan proposed tactics like featuring student athletes on social media. While the full effects were not seen during the term, parts of the plan were adopted by the athletics department. Overall, the report recommends creating detailed marketing plans to support large projects and initiatives.
This document outlines a program evaluation for a transitional care program. It discusses using a mixed methods approach, gathering both quantitative and qualitative data to evaluate the program. The data will be analyzed and used to develop recommendations to improve or continue the program. Interviews, surveys, and focus groups will provide information on how well the program is operating and its level of success. The evaluation findings will be used by various stakeholders to refine strategies and guide effective service delivery.
Economic Cost-Benefit Assessment of Int'l Educational ProgramMark Chesney
The document summarizes a cost-benefit analysis of a proposed higher education project in Mauritius. The project aims to increase enrollment in graduate programs to produce more skilled workers and revive the country's competitiveness. An economic analysis finds that engineering and MBA degrees would provide positive net present value to society through increased wages, while PhDs would incur more costs than benefits. A financial analysis also finds the project viable due to incremental income benefits outweighing costs. However, a sensitivity analysis shows the project's net present value could become negative under different scenarios. In conclusion, the analysis properly accounts for costs, benefits, and uncertainties, but could have discussed broader economic impacts in more detail.
The quarterly report summarizes activities of the Alif Ailaan project in District Jamshoro from April to June 2015. Key activities included:
- Organizing exposure visits for media journalists to project areas which resulted in media coverage of the project.
- Conducting UC Parent Ittehad meetings to mobilize communities around demanding education rights.
- Holding meetings with Village Organizations and School Management Committees to discuss enrollment drives and issues in local schools.
- Collecting and analyzing enrollment data which showed an increase in enrollment, especially of girls, in target union councils compared to previous years.
The report concludes that community mobilization activities were effective in raising awareness about education rights and increasing
Our Life’s Discovery 2 April 27, 2015
Our Life’s Discovery 3 April 27, 2015
Genesis Zapata
SOM 301 Lab 206
April 27, 2015
Date: April 27, 2015
To: Steve Jones, CSR Program Director
From: Genesis Zapata, Discovery Communications Marketer
Subject: Our Life’s Discovery Tutoring Program
During our Creating Change seminar you gave us all a challenge to create a new Corporate Social Responsibility program that would benefit our local Silver Spring, MD community as well as Discovery Communications. With the achievement gap affecting minorities in Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS), Discovery should consider utilizing its educational products and services towards an after school employee volunteer tutoring program for struggling students. A program such as this one would not only help these students but it will also give Discovery a competitive advantage as well as favorable publicity within the community. The following investigation and examination indicates how such a project could be organized.
Achievement Gap
In the last decade MCPS has made many strides to close the achievement gap between minorities and their fellow white/asian students. The MCPS achievement gap is closely related to a student’s ethnicity, race and income level. The MCPS system is divided between its advanced high schools where White and Asian students attend; and its low-scoring ranked minority high schools. Most of these low performing schools are located in Silver Spring, Md. According to the findings of the County Council’s Office of Legislative Oversight found in MCPS website, “Since 2010, the economic, racial and ethnic stratification of students among MCPS high schools has increased . . . the achievement gap between high- and low-poverty high schools has widened [since 2008] ” (p. 9). Achieving as well as maintaining high grades in these schools is increasingly harder for struggling students of all walks of life, leading several students to drop out and forgo continuing their education.
Nevertheless MCPS states on their website, they will narrow the gap by adding more teachers. As well as decrease classroom sizes specifically in high schools [where there is more need], this will allow a more focused attention to students who are experiencing difficulty in school (p.1). Under these circumstances, creating an after school-tutoring program would be most beneficial to the community. Together with focusing MCPS’s resources on failing students, we can increase MCPS’s chances of lowering the achievement gap. Correspondingly, struggling students will experience a sense of community through our program as well as giving them the confidence needed to engage in becoming active participants in furthering their education.
Discovery Program Initiation
Undoubtedly there is a substantial amount of work ahead of MCPS, but Disco.
The Earn-A-Bike Co-op seeks to increase self-empowerment and community engagement among low-income youth by operating a community bicycle repair shop. The shop provides equipment and expertise to facilitate affordable, hands-on bicycle maintenance and repair activities. Surveys of participants indicate the program has been successful in changing lives and fostering new skills, but limitations in time and data prevent determining conclusively if the program directly causes these outcomes or if other factors contribute. The evaluation aims to assist future development and assess the program's impact, but a formal report of metrics and outcomes has not yet been provided to the Board of Directors.
A team of University of Michigan students received a $5,000 grant to research the student debt problem and develop a solution. They interviewed over 100 students to understand factors influencing their college and major choices, as well as their financial situations. Based on this research, the team created a web application called "Dough" to improve student loan literacy. Dough provides personalized information and tools to help students understand how their borrowing decisions impact long-term financial burden and credit. The goal is to reduce student debt and default rates.
The Kansas City Public Schools 2013-2014 Communications Plan outlines strategies to better engage the community in supporting increased student achievement. The plan focuses on communicating a clear message about preparing students to be college, career, and workforce ready. It aims to build voice around this message in all public relations and marketing efforts. Key objectives include communicating to support student achievement, encouraging community and staff engagement, enabling two-way communication, and taking advantage of opportunities to communicate at the grassroots level. The plan details tactics like highlighting a school each week, developing district report cards, and conveying daily success stories to achieve these objectives and increase engagement.
PAISA is a citizen-led effort in India that aims to improve transparency in government expenditures and public participation in local service delivery. It does this through collecting expenditure data from schools using citizen volunteers and presenting it in a way that is easy for citizens to understand. It also trains "fiscal detectives" through a two-year course to monitor expenditures and demand accountability. Some of PAISA's results include government recognition of the need for real-time expenditure data and greater awareness of government finances among students.
PAISA is a citizen-led effort in India that aims to improve transparency in government expenditures and public participation in local service delivery. It does this through collecting expenditure data from schools using citizen volunteers and presenting it in a way that is easy for citizens to understand. It also trains "fiscal detectives" through a two-year course to monitor expenditures and demand accountability. Some of PAISA's results include government recognition of the need for real-time expenditure data and greater awareness of government finances among students.
This document provides a project charter and plan for improving the affordability of higher education in Michigan. The project aims to lower costs for students through three approaches: educating students about funding options via a scholarship search engine; decreasing costs per student through curriculum acceptance policies; and increasing funding via business incorporation programs. Key milestones include developing the project scope, plans, and documents by February 2015; obtaining stakeholder approval by April 2015; and conducting research and analysis from April to June 2015. The preliminary budget totals $2.11 million, with the largest expenses going towards the scholarship search engine and data storage/organization. Risks include potential delays, lack of stakeholder buy-in, and increased costs.
University of Lagos Students Assembly (U.S.A) Orientation booklet containing a compilation of #MEET_USA campaign posts to educate the everyone about U.S.A constitution, members and project achievements, since 2014.
A research report by ITS, commissioned by Greener Journeys in partnership with the UK Department for Transport, highlighting the role played by the bus in driving jobs and economic prosperity.
The research, Buses and the Economy II, conducted by Professor Peter Mackie and Dr Dan Johnson, investigates the link between bus services and the wider economy, including access to jobs, shopping and leisure facilities, and in wider social cohesion.
www.greenerjourneys.com/2014/07/buses-economy-ii
www.its.leeds.ac.uk/research/themes/economicappraisal
The document discusses a project between community colleges and Walmart Foundation to help move low-income individuals into middle-skill jobs. It provides an overview of the project goals, outcomes, and individual college programs. The key points are:
1) The project aimed to provide training and credentials to low-income individuals to obtain middle-skill jobs and close the gap between education levels and available jobs.
2) Across 12 community colleges, the project exceeded its goals by serving nearly 13,000 individuals, awarding over 6,800 credentials, and placing over 2,200 individuals in middle-skill jobs.
3) Individual college programs varied but focused on providing education, training, job readiness support, and partnerships with
Similar to Implementation Report Final Version (20)
1. Running Head: 2013-14 IMPLEMENATION REPORT
Youth Opportunity Pass Implementation Report
Mid-City CAN Improving Transportation in City Heights
Momentum Team of Mid-City CAN
By: Abdulrahim Mohamed
March 17, 2015
2. 2013-14 IMPLEMENTATION REPORT
2
Table of Contents
0. Purpose of Implementation Report……………………………..................3
1. Introduction of the Youth Opportunity Pass Project
1.1 Background………………………………………………………………..3
1.2 Purpose………………………………………………………..................3
1.3 Benefits……………………………………………………………………4
2. Program Scope……………………………………………………………………..4
3. Fiscal Year 13-14 Implementation Budget
3.1 Description of Budget……………...................................................5-6
4. Implementation Layout
4.1 Evaluation Factors………………………………………......................7
4.2 Selection of Criteria……………………………………….....................8
4.3 Stages of Implementation………………………………………...........9
5. Implementation Assessment
5.1 Successes………………………………………………………...........10
5.2 Challenges……………………………………………………..................10-11
6. Conclusion
6.1 Suggestions and Recommendations ……………………………….11
6.2 Best Practices ………………………………………………………11-12
6.3 Looking Ahead: YOP Scalability …………………………………….12
3. 2013-14 IMPLEMENTATION REPORT
3
0. Purpose of Report
This report is created to evaluate the implementation effectiveness of the YOP (Youth
Opportunity Pass) pilot project. It is not meant to evaluate the effectiveness of the passes
themselves, there is a separate evaluation for that question. The composition of this report is
broken down into six areas. We will discuss the program’s origination, scope, budget,
implementation layout, assessment of implementation and suggestions and recommendations, as
well as, project scalability. The overall goal of the report is to demonstrate what we learned in
our first year of implementation and show others what adjustments and enhancements would be
needed for the next year of the project and the years that follow.
1. Introduction of the Youth Opportunity Pass Project
1.1 Background:
In 2011, residents in City Heights came together with a Mid-City CAN community organizer to
create affordable transit for youth in their community. They had to make decisions on whether to
pay for putting food on the table or paying for transportation-even though both are necessary.
Through all their hard work, I joined the ITCH (Improving Transportation in City Heights)
momentum team in 2012 and made a petition that serves their goal of helping youth have
opportunities for success. This has led to a proposal called the Youth Opportunity Pass. The
proposal, in the following paragraph, gives a summation of the City Heights community in recent
years.
“School busing has been severely cut in recent years, affecting almost 400 students
in the City Heights area alone. Due to these cuts, students are forced to walk long distances
or buy bus passes to get to school. The long walks have put kids at risk of becoming
victims of crime and having accidents with motor vehicles. Transportation struggles can
cause increased stress, hurt school attendance, reduce participation in extracurricular
activities, and decrease job opportunities. As a result, transit-dependent, low-income
students experience limited opportunities for enhanced educational, extracurricular, and
economic success.”1
1.2 Purpose:
The purpose of the YOP Program is to increase transit ridership, safety, and access to education
and jobs for young people in San Diego, who attend school fulltime, by providing a free youth
bus pass through their school. We need to secure reliable, accessible, efficient and affordable
public transportation for our hardworking students. We would want to give all students the same
opportunities, like other higher income students, to succeed in their lives so that they can achieve
their educational and occupational goals for a better future.
1 Mid-City CAN, “The Youth Opportunity Pass- A Pilot”, 2012
4. 2013-14 IMPLEMENTATION REPORT
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1.3 Benefits:
The Improving Transportation in City Heights Momentum Team understood that in order for San
Diego to grow and prosper, the next generation of youth must be the backbone of our city. The
youth have to be given an opportunity to fulfill their goals and dreams. Through the effort,
discipline, and diligence of our residents, we were able to have the Youth Opportunity Pass
Program. It was a project that we petitioned and fought for in 2012 that lead to program
acceptance in 2013. With that win, we can show the benefits of the Youth Opportunity Pass
(YOP) throughout the program life cycle. The following demonstrates the benefits of instituting
this program.
Youth Safety
Economic Development & Access to Employment
Access to School & Extra-Curricular Activities
Enables students to travel around San Diego
Decreases air pollution and GHG emissions
Grows the next generation of transit riders
2. Program Scope:
The Youth Opportunity Pass Pilot Program targets low-income high school students ages 14-17.
The high schools covered in this project were: Hoover, Crawford, Lincoln and San Diego High.
They were chosen by transit accessibility and transit dependency of student populations. It was
designed to be for the entire 13-14 school year which spans nine months. In addition, the goal for
the 1000 bus passes was to distribute them evenly across these schools. Now, it is an eight month
program that started October 23rd
, 2013 and ended June 30th
, 2014. During these months,
approximately 850 bus passes were dispersed among the four schools. The reasons for the change,
from the original scope to the current scope, can be found in the “Challenges” section (pg. 10-11)
of this report. The cost of the program was $359,000 dollars. A description of the program funds,
shown in figure 1, depicts funding sources and the contribution percentage of those sources. This
program is a partnership between Mid-City-CAN, The City of San Diego, Metropolitan Transit
System, and San Diego Unified School District.
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Figure 1: Contribution Percentage from Funding Sources
The figure indicates a high contribution level from the City of San Diego and the San Diego
Unified School District (SDUSD). The Metropolitan Transportation System (MTS) provided
pictured compass cards to the bus pass recipients’ as an in-kind donation shown in table 1.
3. Fiscal Year 2014 Implementation Budget
3.1 Description of Budget:
The program budget was devised and developed by the San Diego Unified School District
(SDUSD) and Mid-City CAN (Community Advocacy Network). SDUSD provided $150,000 and
the City of San Diego provided $200,000. SDUSD had an agreement with MTS for 1,000 passes
for 8 months at $36/pass. Not all funds for passes were expended; 875 passes were distributed and
remaining funds rolled over to the next year of the project.
SDUSD allocated $59,000 of its contribution for a third-party evaluation, outreach workers and
incentives. Mid-City CAN directed the outreach workers. The evaluation study was conducted as
a collaboration between Global Action Research and Sustainable Community Solutions at UCSD.
The evaluation component was needed to see the effects of the program and have data for next
year’s program. Promotoras (outreach workers) helped students with the YOP applications and
promoted the program to students and other community members, in addition to handing surveys
to and collecting surveys from students- materials and supplies were included. Incentives played
a part in encouraging students in the control group to take the surveys. The production costs of $2
per compass card were covered as an in-kind donation from MTS.
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Budget Item Amount
Passes (1000 ct. for 8 months) $288,000
Evaluation Study $40,000
Outreach Workers and Incentives $19,000
Replacement Cards $3,000
Production Costs (in-kind by MTS) $9,000
Total : $359,000
Table 1: YOP Budget
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4. Implementation Layout
4.1 Evaluation Factors
To properly evaluate the YOP program and assess its value, choosing good evaluation factors
would be important in measuring program success. The evaluation factors chosen for the
program are: comfort zone, mobility, safety, academic achievement, and access to opportunity.
We believe that these factors are the main influencers of student success. The hallmark of the
evaluation is to demonstrate how the Youth Opportunity Pass positively impacts these factors.
The flowchart, shown in Caption 1, shows the process of how each factor directly and indirect
affect each other. A description of each evaluation factor is indicated below.
Figure 2: Impact of Youth Opportunity Pass
Comfort Zone: How comfortable students feel about riding transit.
Mobility: How often students use transit and the diversity/distance of the places they travel to.
Safety: How safe is it for students to get to and from the places they need to go (school, work,
extra-curricular activities, shopping, etc).
Academic Achievement: Are students able to attend school on time and how they can get
resources to help them do better in school.
Access to Opportunity: Opportunities for students to improve their quality of life. Examples
include: extracurricular and recreational activities, volunteer work, access to jobs and
internships.
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4.2 Selection of Criteria
Once the evaluation and project budget was determined, an application was needed for students
to apply for the Youth Opportunity Pass. Mid-City CAN, MTS, and SDUSD collaborated
together on designing and drafting the YOP application. As the organizations continued to work
on the application, selection criteria was important to determine students who were eligible to
receive a bus pass. The flow chart, shown in caption 2, gives a breakdown of the criteria.
Figure 3: Selection of Criteria
Once the criteria were established, the selection process began. The selection process went as
followed:
San Diego Unified School District will prequalify a pool of students who can apply.
Students who receive application must attend orientation and complete application.
Students who fulfill the requirements will be randomly selected to receive bus passes.
The rest of the students were placed in a control group. They still had the opportunity to
participate in the program study, receive incentives and potentially receive a pass later in the
school year.
Distance
Student Qualification
Family Income Attendance Academic Support
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4.3 Stages of Implementation
SDUSD Approval
of $150,000
City of SD
Approval of
$200,000
Start of Fiscal
Year 2013-2014
Email to principals
regarding plans for
new project
4/ 9/ 2013 6/10/2013 7/1/2013 7/15/2013
Check
transmitted to
MTS
10/22/2013
SDUSD approval of
agreement w/MTS
and Mid-City CAN
10/29/2013
9/19/13 10/10/13 11/12/13 12/13/13 1/10/148/22/13
1:00pm: San
Diego High
09:30am: Hoover
12:30pm: Lincoln
11:00am:
Crawford
11/15/2013 11/22/2013 12/06/2013
Stage 1:
Acquisition and
transmission of
funds to MTS
Stage 2:
Coordination with
partner agencies
Stage 3:
Evaluation
Stage 4:
Announcement of
control group and
bus pass recipients.
Distribution of
passes
Evaluation
Collaboration
Meeting
SDUSD internal
meeting on
evaluation
Evaluation
rollout
Application
Finalized
Baseline Surveys
Collected
9/9/13 9/18/13 9/23/13 10/1/13 11/13-1/14
Mid-line
Surveys
Collected
Evaluation
Collaboration
Meeting
3/2014 11/4/13
End-line Surveys
Collected
5/14 & 9/14
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5. Implementation Assessment
5.1 Successes
As I look back on the program from inception to completion of the first year, implementation
improved each and every month. There was an increase in the number of passes distributed per
month and improving coordination; this is a testament to the determination and persistence of
everyone involved in the implementation process. Knowing that a partnership between agencies
like SDUSD, the City of San Diego, MTS, and Mid-City CAN can implement a program of this
caliber, it gives us the confidence to strive even harder to enhance and strengthen our
implementation processes. Having the opportunity to have this program continue for another
year is a tremendous step in the right direction. The successes that we can take with us for the
next year of the Youth Opportunity Pass program are mentioned below:
Promotoras are an important conduit for communication with students and schools.
Communication between Mid-City CAN, evaluators and the school sites.
There were numerous applicants and overwhelming demand for the passes that a waitlist
was needed.
Community members were motivated by the fact that decision makers were taking an
interest in them.
Smaller scale orientations in the schools were easier than assemblies with several
hundred students.
The evaluators have been able to collect a lot of data from the students; we are creating a
data pool that does not exist elsewhere-there are very few studies of free bus pass
programs…we are on the cutting edge.
Cooperation from YOP Partner Agencies: MTS, City of San Diego and San Diego
Unified School District.
SDUSD & MTS created a streamlined technical process. Used Dropbox as a shared
secure portal which made data more accessible.
Nearly all funding went to passes and evaluation-there was minimal administrative
overhead.
5.2 Challenges
There were many challenges to implementing the program. When implementing a program that
has not been done before in San Diego, you will encounter unexpected situations and
circumstances beyond your control. Changes in leadership in San Diego Unified School District
and the City of San Diego were examples of uncontrollable events. There were other obstacles,
listed below, that delayed the implementation process:
Money from City of San Diego was late and threw the project into uncertainty; this
caused the project to be delayed -while MTS required full upfront payment.
During the earlier stages of implementing the program, communication between MCC
staff and the school sites had to go through SDUSD program manager.
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Limited staff time at SDUSD and schools for implementation (something added onto
their jobs). Staff turnover at Hoover and changing point person at Crawford.
Lengthy time period for distribution of passes and not all passes were distributed in the
first year; the rollover of passes was used for this summer and next year.
Replacement compass cards had to be picked up at MTS store, there was confusion about
activation of passes, and there was a delay in data for evaluation.
Mid-City CAN had to simultaneously oversee parts of the implementation of program
and continue gathering political support for another year of funding.
The funding was only short term funding.
MTS required students’ pictures to be on compass card and be in a certain format: a
process had to be established and there was no system set up to transmit the pictures from
the district data system to MTS. Because of SDUSD’s change in their database to
PowerSchool, many pictures were not in the right format and many passes were delayed.
MTS did not have technical ability to do aggregate tap data geographically.
Promotora program started late as a result of a long contract process-this resulted in
families not knowing about program until later in the school year.
6. Conclusion
6.1 Suggestions and Recommendations
The lessons learned have given us the opportunity to overcome similar challenges and create a
stronger YOP program for next year and the years to come. The recommendations and
suggestions used to make the adjustments are described below:
Guidebook for schools on how the process works (how selection should go, who to
contact about questions, how to request replacements etc.) and clearer explanation of
selection criteria on application.
Activate the passes before they are handed out or training on activation have MTS at
school orientations.
Need clearer and faster lines of communication between partner agencies.
Have quarterly meetings in person during the summer between SDUSD coordinator,
school principals, MCC, Promotoras, and MTS staff.
Revise MTS/SDUSD contract to not require full upfront payment and allow for rollover
of passes to next year.
Have online applications, in addition to paper applications, to decrease the need for data
entry and data entry mistakes.
Administrative position at SDUSD dedicated to pass program implementation, who can
take burden off of school staff and oversee Promotora Program.
6.2 Best Practices
We have established a set of procedures that will lay the groundwork for enhanced
implementation effectiveness for the subsequent years:
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Emphasis on ridership, safety, and economic development.
Require passes to be used on a regular basis, or student is removed from program.
Monitor student usage of bus passes in order to ensure that student is still enrolled,
attending and using the card.
Identify eligible students at each school.
Support to school site staff with training-consisting of school staff.
6.3 Looking Ahead: YOP Scalability
Expansion to Other School Districts:
Leaders of several communities have already expressed interest in the expansion of the program.
Expanding the program to other school districts will have a profound impact on program
longevity. Figure 4 shows both current pilot area and potential YOP expansion areas within
priority areas. Lemon Grove, a possible expansion site, is very interested in having a program,
like ours, in their city. This is an important step, but is only part of our goal of attaining ITCH’s
vision.
Figure 4: Map of priority areas for CalEnviroScreen Tool
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ITCH Vision
ITCH envisions a universal no-cost bus pass program for all young people (middle school to
college) in San Diego. The inclusion of middle school to college and expansion into regional and
statewide domains will increase our chances of having this project become a full-scale,
permanent program. We are looking at all levels of government, public and private partnerships
to create a sustainable, and eventually, permanent funding source.