Safe and Smart: Making After-School Hours Work for Kids - June 1998

A r c h i v e d  I n f o r m a t i o n

Communities Meeting the Need for
After-School Activities


Institute for Student Achievement
New York State
Contact: Lavinia T. Dickerson, 516-562-5440

The Institute for Student Achievement provides a school-based program of counseling and academic assistance to middle and high school students who are having trouble in school. The program, which has both after-school and summer components, operates in six school districts in New York State, including Long Island, New York City, Mt. Vernon, and Troy. STAR (Success Through Academic Readiness) supports high school students through academic enrichment and counseling for at least two hours a day after school. COMET (Children of Many Educational Talents) addresses the special needs of middle school students, helping them to improve communication, comprehension, and social interaction skills and to make the transition to high school smoothly.

After-school staff coordinate with the teachers of participating children to make sure children get the extra help they need in academic subjects through tutoring, academic enrichment activities, and computer-assisted instruction. School staff, after-school staff, students, and parents together develop an Individual Enrichment Plan to set goals and measure progress. In addition, students join weekly individual or group counseling sessions.

Community service and family involvement are key components of the after-school programs. For example, students who first learned technology skills through the program then led a computer class for parents. Parents attend conflict mediation training and parenting skills workshops.

Every STAR student has graduated from high school, and 96 percent have gone on to college. Test scores at participating Hempstead High School on Long Island improved so much that the state removed the school from its list of low-performing schools a year ahead of schedule.
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