Our Work

Leveling the Education Playing Field for Disadvantaged Youth

Purpose:

To level the education playing field for disadvantaged youth (Organizational Mission).

Method:

We will focus J2W resources and capacity, using multiple platforms, that work in synergy to address the targeted challenges (Program Strategy).

End State:

Disadvantaged youth have measurable improvements in post-high school productivity (Impact Measurement).

Problem Statement Pathway for Low-Income Students Economically-disadvantaged students generally perform worse in school than their higher income peers

J2W Programming Framework Build partnerships to identify gap areas, develop solutions, and test concepts while bridging grade bands

J2W Foundation Program Theory of Change

Strategy to Achieve Theory of Change Work to ensure more access to quality early childhood education programs, coupled with supplemental after-school/summer programs throughout elementary school, to better ensure students are on-level by 3rd grade. Students on-level by 3rd grade regularly attend school, feel connected, and have higher on-time graduation rates.

Community-Level Impact Measures of Performance

For more information, please see Data Analysis section at the bottom of the page

Data Analysis

  • Goal: To demonstrate community-level academic and social emotional learning impact in all three geographic service areas.
  • Method: From 2021-2031, evaluate key academic and social emotional learning indicators within the entire elementary school (pre-kindergarten through 5th grade) student body for each district.
  • Results:
    • At the end of school year 2022-2023, we have now been able to assess the key indicators within each of our service area school districts. Much of the data is being considered baseline data coming out of COVID-19 and its associated (and expected) learning loss. Moving forward, in 2023 and beyond, we will use this data to help inform our partners on developing strategies to address this loss.
      • For kindergarten readiness, we assess Virginia Kindergarten Readiness Program (VKRP) testing in Virginia and Kindergarten Readiness Assessment (KRA) testing in Maryland.
        • Pre-COVID, Dorchester demonstrated 44% readiness, dropping to 29% readiness at the end of school year 2021-2022, and rising slightly to 32% readiness in the spring 2023. We coded this “red” for a health score.
        • Pre-COVID, Winchester demonstrated 67% readiness, dropping to 64% readiness at the end of school year 2021-2022, and dropping further to 48% readiness in the fall of 2022. Winchester grew to 51% in the spring 2023. We coded this “yellow” for a health score.
        • Pre-COVID, Fairfax demonstrated 63% readiness, increasing to 79% readiness at the end of school year 2022-2023. We coded this “green” for a health score.
      • For 3rd grade on-level reading, we analyze Standards of Learning (SOL) testing and the Maze reading assessment in Virginia and the Maryland Comprehensive Assessment Program (MCAP) and DIBELS (Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills) testing in Maryland.
        • Pre-COVID, Dorchester demonstrated 26% MCAP readiness, increasing slightly higher to 33% readiness at the end of school year 22-23. We coded this “red” for a health score.
        • Pre-COVID, Dorchester demonstrated 36% DIBELS readiness, inching slightly higher to 37% readiness at the end of school year 22-23. We coded this “red” for a health score. This score seems to correspond with the results from the reading MCAP.
        • Pre-COVID, Winchester demonstrated 54% readiness, dropping during COVID and returning to 54% readiness at the end of school year 22-23. We coded this “green” for a health score.
        • Winchester began Maze assessments post-COVID, beginning in the fall of 2022. Initial benchmark assessment reflects 61% readiness, moving to 62% readiness in the spring 2023.
        • Pre-COVID, Fairfax demonstrated 76% readiness, rising to 78% readiness at the end of school year 22-23. We coded this “green” for a health score.
      • For 3rd grade on-level math, we analyze SOL testing in Virginia; and MCAP and iReady testing in Maryland.
        • Pre-COVID, Dorchester demonstrated 32% MCAP readiness, dropping to 23% readiness at the end of school year 22-23. We coded this “red” for a health score.
        • Pre-COVID, Dorchester demonstrated 6% iReady readiness, increasing to 28.4% readiness at the end of school year 2021-2022. We coded this “yellow” for a health score.
        • Pre-COVID, Winchester demonstrated 77% readiness, dropping to 49% readiness, and then rising slightly to 51% at the end of school year 22-23. We coded this “yellow” for a health score.
        • Pre-COVID, Fairfax demonstrated 84% readiness, dropping to 66% readiness at the end of school year 2021-2022, and rising to 75% at the end of 22-23. We coded this “green” for a health score.
      • For elementary school attendance, we measure chronic absenteeism rates, hoping to see reductions in loss of school time. Chronic absenteeism is defined as missing 10% or more of the school year (equaling 18 or more days in year) and includes both excused and unexcused absences.
        • Pre-COVID, Dorchester reported 27% chronic absentees, with a rise to 36.4% chronically absent by the end of the 22-23 school year, initially receiving a “red” health score. That said, to date (late fall 2023), absenteeism in DCPS has dropped significantly to 28.4%, thus earning the yellow.
        • Pre-COVID, Winchester reported 16% chronic absentees, with an increase to 17.75% chronically absent by the end of the 22-23 school year, receiving a “yellow” health score after coming down from a school-year high of 25%. That said, to date (late fall 2023), absenteeism in WPS has dropped to 15.25% earning a green.
        • Pre-COVID, Fairfax reported 5% chronic absentees, with an increase to 17% chronically absent by the end of the 2021-2022 school year, receiving a “yellow” health score.
    • While improvements may be very slight in many assessments, and in some cases significantly below what we would hope, these small areas of growth we hope signify the districts have already hit the “COVID floor” and are starting to see positive change moving forward.