Caring may help keep girls in school
More than 8,000 girls from seventh to 12th grade dropped out of Colorado public schools in the 2006-07 school year.
What might have kept them in the classroom? Having a teacher, family member or mentor tell them they can overcome obstacles and succeed - and are expected to, according to speakers at Tuesday's Education Advocacy Circle of the Women's Resource Agency.
"Kids do not care how much you know until they know how much you care," said Mary Thurman, deputy superintendent for Colorado Springs School District 11. All children, from those in special education to those in gifted programs, are at risk of failure if they're not challenged and given expectations, she said.
The agency sponsors occasional round-table discussions on women's issues to promote the sharing of resources and ideas. At Tuesday's meeting, participants heard about several educational programs, the need for volunteer mentors and some success stories.
Every D-11 teacher is trained in the "response to intervention" system, which Thurman described as a way to ensure that lessons are adjusted or enhanced so that all children learn.
"If your instruction is not working, we put things in place so you learn," she said.
Although the high school dropout rate for girls statewide is about 4 percent, it has risen steadily the past few years. It was 3.2 percent in the 1996-97 school year and dropped to a low of 2.1 percent in the 2002-03 school year before beginning to rise again, according to statistics on the Colorado Department of Education Web site.
In El Paso County, 624 girls dropped out of school in 2006-07, and 23 dropped out of Teller County schools.
Other speakers Tuesday talked about removing obstacles to education, such as providing childcare for teen mothers, and providing a support system for those who may feel out of place in a classroom.
For example, women who want to go to college when they're older often lack family support, may be uncomfortable among younger students and feel guilty that they're away from their families, said Regina Lewis, assistant dean at Pikes Peak Community College for the Women's Re-entry Program.
"It can be difficult when you don't know who to ask, you don't know what to ask and sometimes you're afraid to ask," Lewis said, adding that women and girls must be taught to be resilient so they become persistent about their futures.
The re-entry program sponsors regular meetings where female students can share their experiences and learn skills that will help them stay in school, she said.
Participants also described outside support programs, such at the InterCept programs sponsored by the Women's Resource Agency and afterschool mentoring programs sponsored by LULAC (League of United Latin American Citizens), a Latino advocacy group, at three area middle schools.
Kimberly Bolding-Perry, director of youth services for the Women's Resource Agency, said the InterCept programs have helped more than 1,000 girls over the past 12 years.
The girls are selected in eighth grade for a "leadership boot camp" and then offered support, such as referrals to needed services, until they graduate, she said. The agency also runs a program for girls who are referred through the courts.
LULAC's greatest need is finding consistent mentors who will work with middle schoolers for up to a year, said Dan Savage, a mentoring coordinator for a program started this year at Irving and Panorama middle schools. The co-ed program is for students with poor grades and no college graduates in their family, he said.
"It all comes back to someone having a relationship with a student," said Peggy Vigil, who coordinates health education for D-11. "Students need to know someone supports them and cares."
RESOURCES
Women's Resource Agency, 750 Citadel Drive East, Suite 3116; 471-3170; www.wrainc.org
LULAC, 829 N. Circle Drive, Suite 101; 637-0037.
Colorado Springs School District 11 Response to Intervention: www.d11.org/RTI/
Pikes Peak Community College: www.ppcc.edu/news/e-news-archive/2008/10-10-2008/womens-re-entry-workshops/
