Heads Up

Heads Up was founded in 1987 as a partnership between the Oakland Unified School District (OUSD) and Head-Royce School (HRS). Over its course, Heads Up has provided educational enrichment and mentoring for more than 700 low-income public school youth, and currently supports an enrollment of 92 students in the 2009-2010 program. Heads Up is housed on the Head-Royce campus, and its administration, budget and fundraising are managed by HRS as part of the School’s commitment to serve the Oakland community by enhancing educational opportunities for students enrolled in OUSD. Donations to the program directly fund Heads Up’s annual operation.

 Mission 

The mission of Heads Up is to provide underserved middle school students of color from OUSD with challenging and enriching educational programs to prepare them for academic success and help them develop an appreciation for community and civic responsibility.

 Goal

The program’s primary goal is to work with students throughout their middle school years, keeping them enthusiastic about learning and providing academic and social guidance.  Students are nominated for participation in Heads Up by their elementary school principals.  The primary criteria for acceptance are demonstrated interest in learning and low annual family income (averaging $30,125 for the 2009-2010 participants).  An essential characteristic of the program is to work with students representing the spectrum of academic achievement, illustrating that we admit students who want to learn, not simply the top performing students in OUSD. 

 Background

Client population 

Number: 92 students

Gender: 66% Female, 34% Male

Ethnicity: 57% African American, 24% Latino/Latina, 19% Asian American

Age: 11-14 years old

Additional qualifier: Students must attend school in Oakland Unified School District.

 The Program

The Heads Up program begins in June and concludes in May, marked by a graduation ceremony for the eighth grade class.  Administrators evaluate the progress of students at the conclusion of the academic year, starting with their fifth grade cumulative GPA. This allows monitoring of the students’ progress throughout their middle school years and the ability to assess strengths or areas of weakness.  For the most part, students’ performance remains steady throughout the challenging years of middle school.  This in itself is an achievement, as it is a period during which many students begin a steady decline in academic performance.  In addition, the program offers a test preparation course during the academic year that assists students in test-taking.  Through intensive content instruction, test-taking strategies and simulated practice exams, students learn methods and strategies for scoring their best on standardized tests.  The course innately provides clear benchmarks as the students’ test results are unequivocal in their progress or lack thereof.  Lastly, at the conclusion of the summer program, students take a survey to provide feedback on their progress throughout the summer in terms of academics, social interaction and general program assessment. This too provides critical information for evaluation purposes. 

Heads Up effectively supports students’ academic performance and the perception of their own abilities to succeed in school.  Students feel better equipped to handle their studies, advocate for themselves and plan for and pursue educational and career goals.  As one student recently reported, “[When I started with Heads Up] I wished I could have a normal summer, sleeping in and staying home, but as the years passed I looked forward to getting a head start on the new grade I would start in the fall.  The program encouraged me to do better in school, educationally and socially... and gave me the extra push to fight through the ups and downs [over the] semesters.”

Primary Community Partners   

Heads Up’s partnership with the Oakland Unified School District is a unique and important element of the program.  Two senior-level administrators are members of the Heads Up Advisory Council, and were part of the conception and planning of every aspect of the program from its inception in 1987. This has enabled Heads Up to navigate the intricacies of the District, introduced it to numerous elementary school principals (more than 30 are involved with the program), and connected the program with over 700 students who have made it stronger every year.

This past summer Heads Up partnered with Bulldogs by the Bay, a volunteer center at Yale University that provides a teaching institute for interns.  As a result, trained eleven Heads Up interns were trained and taught a myriad of subjects ranging from college prep courses, including Introduction to Algebra and American Literature, to elective workshops such as Cooking and Improvisational Drama.  The teacher interns also had mentoring responsibilities for a group of six to ten students.    

 Impact

To illustrate the impact of Heads Up, a sample group of current program participants was examined and findings concluded that the average GPA rose from 3.15 to 3.41 or 8% between 5th and 6th grades. Between 6th and 7th grades, it rose from 3.41 to 3.79, or 11%, and between 5th and 7th grades, during the first two years of enrollment in the program, the average GPA rose by .64, or 20%.  
 

Self-Advocacy 

In addition to developing specific academic skills, Heads Up students often report generally feeling more capable of advocating for themselves in and out of the classroom.  When asked about the impact of the program, one student commented, “I used to be really shy.  I never asked questions, and this [program] helped me speak out.”  Another student echoed, “Now if I need help, I go in, and I’m not scared to get help.”  This greater confidence has had a ripple effect.  As one alumnus wrote, “Heads Up has brought me out of my shell… it used to be hard for me to make friends and be comfortable with myself around the unfamiliar...Now that I have completed my full three years of this program, I have great self-confidence, and I do not have a problem socializing with other people.  

Personal Support

Students cite the Heads Up staff as a major reason for the program’s effectiveness.  One student wrote in a letter to Heads Up’s director, "Thank you for seeing me as an individual instead of a part of a whole class.  Most programs I have been in (teachers or instructors) never got close to students."  For another student, the individual attention made all the difference.  In a letter to the program director, she wrote, "I appreciate you talking to me about my behavior… because of that, I am doing much better in class." Through information contained in student evaluations, it is clear that educational support is inextricable from personal support in the Heads Up program.

Encouragement, discipline and personal connection appear to be as essential to the program as its formal curricula.  The lessons the program teaches go well beyond study skills, writing and math.  One student wrote that participating in the program "really showed me that there is hope for minorities to try to make it in this world, but that you have to work hard to make something of yourself." Another student put it simply, thanking a Heads Up teacher for "showing me that I really am capable of being a very intelligent person."

As the program strives to enrich and empower its students, they successfully demonstrate their ability to self-advocate in the large Oakland public school system.  Here are a few highlights of the 2007 summer survey:

• 91% of students reported that their academics had improved since joining the program.
• 87% of students believed that what they are learning in the program will help them in the future.
• 79% of students feel that they would have an advantage over their classmates when they returned to their regular school.

 Evaluation Methods and Tools:

Heads Up tracks the grades of students throughout their affiliation with Heads Up, so that the program is able to analyze students’ progress and whether they are maintaining their GPA and improving academic performance.  Test scores and overall academic progress continue to be monitored after students graduate from the program.  In addition, as discussed above, students and their parents are surveyed at the end of every summer, which provides a qualitative assessment of the program, concluding vital information for course development, teacher training and program improvement.

An additional survey was recently conducted, studying the progress of Heads Up students who entered the program between 2000 and 2007 (as 6^th graders). Overall, these students have shown marked improvements on academic achievements as measured by a 1-11% increase in Grade Point Average (GPA) from elementary through middle school.  For example, the Heads Up class of 2004’s average elementary GPA of 3.35 increased by 11%, to 3.73.  Approximately half of the Class of 2000 responded, reporting that they are attending college or university.  Among the colleges are University of Chicago, UC San Diego, UC Berkeley, UC Riverside, San Jose State University, Cal Poly Pomona, Merritt Community College, Laney Community College, Chico State College and Cal State Northridge.  This information is made more impressive when one acknowledges that many of these students are the first in their family to seek an advanced degree.

Testimonials from students entering or continuing high school cited receiving direct help with their schoolwork and study skills as well as acadcemic career planning to be the most useful aspects of the program. 

 Conclusion

The Heads Up program has been supporting and enriching students for over 20 years.  Given the fact that Head-Royce School is the sole administrator of services, coupled with the long-established relationship between HRS/Heads Up and OUSD, the program provides an extremely stable learning environment for its participants.  As Head-Royce School’s Summer Enrichment Program (SEP) is a mainstay of the area’s academic-based “camps” and is an integral part of HRS’ revenue stream, it is certain that the opportunity for Heads Up to partner with and benefit from the SEP will be present for many years forward. In addition, the Head-Royce Board of Trustees, in conjunction with the Heads Up Advisory Council is committed to sustaining this program.  This is an important factor when considering the stability of this organization during a tenuous or downturn economic climate. 

Participants, teachers, interns and volunteers alike who are affiliated with Heads Up affirm that this is a life-changing program for students. Without such a program, many would not graduate from high school or even consider college.  In the absence of Heads Up and the academic enrichment it provides, many students would be unprepared and unable to meet the demands of current or future educational challenges. 

On behalf of every Heads Up student - past, present and future, your interest in and commitment to this vital community is greatly appreciated. It is the hope of the Heads Up program that you will find it to be high-quality, high-impact and unique, and ultimately worthy of your financial support. Thank you for your time and attention and please feel free to contact Jill Davis for further information at: jdavis@headroyce.org or by phone at: 510.531.1300 x2148.