Format

Individual Presentation

First Presenter's Institution

EnCompass Resources for Learning

Second Presenter's Institution

EnCompass Resources for Learning

Third Presenter's Institution

NA

Fourth Presenter's Institution

NA

Fifth Presenter's Institution

NA

Location

Session 6 (Percival)

Strand #1

Academic Achievement & School Leadership

Strand #2

Family & Community

Relevance

EnCompass: Resources for Learning, an educational non-profit organization in Rochester NY, established in 2002, started providing targeted academic support to students through small group instruction, teaching study skills and executive functioning skills, test preparation, and after school programming through collaboration with the Rochester City School District and several local charter schools. While these programs and services directly supported students’ academic progress, it became increasingly clear that many students who need the additional support had sporadic attendance, and in some cases faced much greater barriers as a result traumatic life experiences, including living in conditions of poverty. The organization determined that in order to support students’ academic success, these barriers to come to school ready to learn needed to be addressed.

Family Navigation began in early 2017, is a program with a focus on empowering and increasing self-determination in families to create safe and supportive learning environments for students to be successful academically. Families work with navigators to identify and self-determine goals for their own families, and work with directly with multiple partnerships and within their child's school with support from the navigator to build capacity to reach their goals.

This presentation will address the strategies used to support families as they increase their engagement with their child's school, while working to combat the effects of trauma and poverty in the home. Additionally, we will discuss how the layering of targeted small group academic support during the school day, extended learning opportunities, and summer learning positively impacts the academic success for the youth involved in Family Navigation.

This presentation will address the strategies used to support families as they increase their engagement with their child's school, while working to combat the effects of trauma and poverty in the home. Additionally, we will discuss how the layering of targeted small group academic support during the school day, extended learning opportunities, and summer learning positively impacts the academic success for the youth involved in Family Navigation.

Brief Program Description

EnCompass: Resources for Learning, an educational non-profit organization in Rochester NY, established in 2002, started providing targeted academic support to students through small group instruction, teaching study skills and executive functioning skills, test preparation, and after school programming through collaboration with the Rochester City School District and several local charter schools. While these programs and services directly supported students’ academic progress, it became increasingly clear that many students who need the additional support had sporadic attendance, and in some cases faced much greater barriers as a result traumatic life experiences, including living in conditions of poverty. The organization determined that in order to support students’ academic success, these barriers to come to school ready to learn needed to be addressed.

Family Navigation is a partnership program between schools, families, Navigators, and the community with the goal of working together to support students int their academic success. Family Navigation invests in the building of trusting relationships to increase equality and empowerment for youth and their families. Navigators provide coaching and parent support for school meetings, and navigating barriers to getting to and connected to schools.

Family Navigation's goal is to support academic success through trusted relationships, safe and supportive conditions and rigorous and culturally responsive academic support both during and after school.

Summary

Key Take away's for participants:

The EnCompass Model for effective layering academic services with navigation wrap support

How Navigators use student, family, and community voice to provide meaningful program opportunities

Strategies Navigators use to support families during school meetings and events

An understanding of the cross systems approach to collaboration

EnCompass Model for continuous improvement and use of data to drive program outcomes

Strategies for effective relationship building between Navigator and families, Families and School, Families and the community

Sharing of Year One Developmental Evaluation: Lessons learned and early successes of implementation phase

Sharing of Year Two: Goals and Direction for Effective Programming

Evidence

EnCompass has partnered with University of Rochester's Center for Urban Education to complete an independent program evaluation. Results from this evaluation will be shared. Further research and findings from standardized measures on the growth and academic and social emotional development of youth served in family navigation through the collection of Fountas Pinnell, STAR Reading, Developmental Asset Profile, and the Associate Child Rating Scale will be shared.

Qualitative assessments and progress monitoring are used to measure program effectiveness. These include: Individualized Learning Goals (youth and families), surveys (school, youth, families, partners), attendance (school and program events), focus groups (families, staff, youth, partners)

Biographical Sketch

Heather is responsible for hiring and evaluating staff, working collaboratively with community partners to ensure services are aligned with the unique needs of the youth and population being served. She oversees partnership, curriculum and training. Prior to her work at EnCompass, Heather was a special education teacher at the Norman Howard School as well as School of the Holy Childhood. She has extensive experience working in and leading programs for diverse and underserved youth. She holds a master’s degree in curriculum with teaching certification in special education.

Donna Meyer, MS Ed. is a Program Administrator for EnCompass: Resources for Learning. She collaborates with school leaders and educators to address strategic priorities and implement academic and social-emotional programming for vulnerable K-8 students in the City of Rochester and surrounding areas. Programs she oversees include programs with: Rochester City School District schools #17 and East High, Discovery Charter School, Exploration Charter School, Dansville Central Schools, Wayland Cohocton Central Schools and Canandaigua School District.

Donna is dedicated to helping all students experience success in school and life. Her expertise in reading instruction, commitment to working with students with special learning needs, and experience as an educational diagnostician help her lead programs and staff responsive to the needs of diverse learners. Donna joined EnCompass in 2002 as a Reading Teacher at The Norman Howard School, a NYS approved special education school. Both EnCompass and The Norman Howard School are programs of Education Success Foundation.

Keyword Descriptors

Academic Success, Family Engagement, Cross Systems Approach, Wrap around Supports

Presentation Year

March 2020

Start Date

3-10-2020 1:00 PM

End Date

3-10-2020 2:15 PM

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Mar 10th, 1:00 PM Mar 10th, 2:15 PM

Increasing Student Academic Outcomes through Intentional Layering of Academic Intervention and Navigation Supports

Session 6 (Percival)

EnCompass: Resources for Learning, an educational non-profit organization in Rochester NY, established in 2002, started providing targeted academic support to students through small group instruction, teaching study skills and executive functioning skills, test preparation, and after school programming through collaboration with the Rochester City School District and several local charter schools. While these programs and services directly supported students’ academic progress, it became increasingly clear that many students who need the additional support had sporadic attendance, and in some cases faced much greater barriers as a result traumatic life experiences, including living in conditions of poverty. The organization determined that in order to support students’ academic success, these barriers to come to school ready to learn needed to be addressed.

Family Navigation is a partnership program between schools, families, Navigators, and the community with the goal of working together to support students int their academic success. Family Navigation invests in the building of trusting relationships to increase equality and empowerment for youth and their families. Navigators provide coaching and parent support for school meetings, and navigating barriers to getting to and connected to schools.

Family Navigation's goal is to support academic success through trusted relationships, safe and supportive conditions and rigorous and culturally responsive academic support both during and after school.