SEED: Expanding Educational Opportunities for Urban Children
The Annie E. Casey Foundation report, A Road to Results, paints a dismal picture of the educational system faced by children in urban areas: "Many schools today -- especially those in disadvantaged neighborhoods -- neither adequately support the aspirations of families and communities for their children, nor prepare these young people for success in the worlds of work, family, and citizenship." A SEED school, by contrast, provides students from challenging circumstances with the academic and social preparation needed to succeed in college and the professional world. A public boarding school based in the community, SEED actively seeks to engage parents and members of the surrounding community in its programs and in supporting student success. The Foundation made grants to SEED as a "bet" on a promising educational model and on the idea that expanding educational opportunities through boarding schools and expanding parent and community engagement were compatible themes that could be pursued simultaneously. The original modest investment appears to have paid off in important ways.
- Over 80% of SEED students entering 9th grade graduate from SEED. Presently, forty-four of the sixty-nine SEED graduates are enrolled in college, and SEED projects that nearly 70% of those who graduated between 2004 and 2007 will graduate from college within six years of high school graduation. Almost all these students come from very low-income backgrounds and are the first in their families to pursue higher education.
- Reflecting the positive results of the Washington, D.C. SEED School and with SEED’s encouragement, the State of Maryland has approved creation of and operating funds for a public boarding education program for up to 400 at-risk youth. The Maryland SEED School opens in September 2008 on a 52-acre campus in southwest Baltimore. Other cities and states also have expressed interest in replication, although SEED's substantial per pupil annual cost makes it likely that new efforts too will include caps on the number of students covered through public subsidies.
- Beyond replication, SEED's educational success has demonstrated that residential schools can benefit from including parents and communities in their programming and, even more important, it is countering a damaging myth and affirming that any child, with the right supports, can succeed and even excel.
- SEED has received various awards, including a 2005 Innovations in Government Award from Harvard University/Ford Foundation and three Social Capitalist Awards from Fast Company magazine and the Monitor Group.
For more information, see the full SEED Program Profile, which includes background on the program, why this was of interest to the Casey Foundation, and our return on investment. Also, Rajiv Vinnakota and Eric Adler, co-founders of the SEED School in Washington, D.C., and SEED School parent Tyna Lyn Hepburn discuss the program In Their Own Words.
Contact:
SEED Foundation
www.SEEDFoundation.com