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PROGRAM NARRATIVE Historical Perspective
Reach for Tomorrow provides access to a reality that many of the students we serve have never witnessed: individuals who have chosen to excel in spite of overwhelming odds and been rewarded for short term sacrifices with long term rewards. RFT incorporates public, private, and academic resources to engage students in planning for their future with the excitement born of enlightened self interest in achieving personal and professional excellence. Education becomes a tool of self actualization rather than a tedious requirement imposed on them from external sources. " Reach For Tomorrow has worked toward awakening youth in science and mathematical education for over a decade. RFT was founded by Peter K. Underwood, a 1973 graduate of the USAF Academy, to inspire students with untapped potential for high achievement to measurably improve their academic performance. By leveraging resources from leading research universities with outstanding science and engineering labs, and the service academies that have access to state of the art technology and scientific innovation; leadership development training courses; and unique hardware such as flight, ship, and even tank simulators, Reach For Tomorrow makes high school mathematics and science classes relevant to students as they begin their high school career. Research has shown that when college applicants reach the 12th grade it is too late to amend three, weak academic years; this critical intervention must be initiated at the start of the high school experience. Our strategy seeks to raise the expectations of all students and enable them to become competitive candidates for premier colleges in the nation. When a student targets entering Harvard, MIT, Princeton, or Yale and prepares accordingly, they will be better able to enter any college of their choice. Upon their return as young adults, they will assume their rightful and well earned positions as community, state, and national leaders. Within the past few years, Reach for Tomorrow, Inc. has partnered with numerous foundations, corporations, military service academies, military installations, universities, and school systems in the United States on a Summer Program, which is the actualization of a national youth academic enrichment strategy. Due to the generosity of our partners, students have attended the Reach for Tomorrow summer program at no cost to them. . Who Will Be The Participants Of This Program And How Will You Select Them? The RFT program will target the entire class of 8th graders in selected public and charter schools throughout the nation with a challenge to complete (1) 25 hours of community service, (2) receive two teacher or counselor recommendations, and (3) complete an interview and application, (4) ability to adhere to the RFT "Rules of Conduct": all of which leads to a one week summer program experience. As in the past, each student is matched in a 1:5 adult to student ratio with a local mentor who is trained by RFT to build on this shared, unique experience. This earned outcome is based on specific performance criteria achieved during the academic year as determined by RFT and the local program manager, and will incorporate improved attendance, academic achievement, and positive attitudes regarding education and their future role as "lifelong learners". The selected students and their adult volunteers will live in the dormitory to experience college life first hand; attend academic labs in science and engineering; pilot light aircraft to understand the correlation between Algebra one, Chemistry, Physics, and Physiology; participate in challenging leadership, team building, and character development seminars; test their athletic abilities and strategic planning skills each evening using college resources such as their rock climbing wall, and learn what they must do to qualify for any college in America. This summer experience is a critical component of the subsequent academic tutoring and mentoring programs, as this serves as the initial short term goal for each student as well an opportunity to bond with their adult volunteer. We have found that providing an "immediate" reward such as a college immersion is essential to maintaining continued attendance and enthusiasm for the additional academic enrichment and remediation tools we offer. The local program manager will oversee the collection of the grading period outcomes (attendance and grades); manage adult volunteer selection and training, continue the motivation efforts for all student teams; coordinate with the after school tutorial staff on the desired outcomes for each student; receive trip planning schedule from RFT National Staff, and manage local student selection and preparation for the summer program. RFT National staff will provide complete planning and oversight of the project with the University conference planning division, military facilities, and local area activity group coordinators to ensure that all participants will benefit from the program RFT local and national staff will be responsible for reporting student performance after the trip for every grading period, at the end of any SAT prep course, and as follows (a minimum of 4 times annually): 1. Tutoring (Thomson-Peterson's and Extralearning.org/Tutor.com)
program attendance and daily classroom attendance, 1. Ensure students participate actively in relevant after school
tutorial sessions; Reach for Tomorrow expects the following results from the participants:
What Are The Intended Goals Of Our Program? RFT has been recognized by a leading college testing service for its ability to motivate a varied and diverse group of students, and has been applauded by senators and former President Bill Clinton for providing a nationally acclaimed leadership and organizational structure that is applicable to any local educational system. Many school systems in jurisdiction we partnered have endorsed the program and funded it based on the measurable and sustainable impact it has on their young people. Reach for Tomorrow raises the expectations of parents, school systems, and students. Participants will seek far better than the "gentleman's C" through early intervention, which will allow students to excel academically and meet the standards for admission to a leading college or university. Our public service strategy empowers local leaders, and informs students that one need not be a Harvard graduate to make a measurable difference in the world. The community service component challenges every student to look outward. They learn that those who are willing to invest in others invest in the nation and the world. Our commitment to this mission is encapsulated in the following approach:
Concurrently, the Reach for Tomorrow summer program promotes career development and higher education opportunities available to the students in the public and private sectors by using hands-on experiences in a nationally renowned university or military service academy to underscore the relevancy of high school and college science, math and engineering coursework to real world applications. It is our theory that a better informed and educated citizenry will uphold the pro norms and core values critical to personal and professional achievement. The program targets incoming high school freshmen whose current grades or scholastic achievement do not reflect their true academic capabilities. Our strategy is based on the observation that the pre- and early high school years determine their academic future and opportunities for success in life. All too often students who have been enthusiastic about education lose interest in highschool, resulting in poor academic performance from which they never recover. RFT aims to intervene during these critical years to help a student maintain his or her momentum towards academic and personal excellence. Students are afforded in-depth exposure to the interesting and exciting opportunities that academic success in high school can provide. Adult volunteers are selected to assist them in reaching their goals throughout their high school years and into the college or service academy application process. The adult volunteer who will accompany the students on the summer program will be community leaders who can serve as a model for character development and provide a support network for local educators and parents in their efforts to improve the lives of local youth. However, RFT does not focus solely on improving grade performance. We also strive to show students the relevance and rewards of pro norms and core values such as integrity, personal excellence, and service to the community and country. In an effort to maximize the program's impact, a set of criteria has been developed to ensure that the students who are most likely to benefit are selected for participation in the program. These criteria include those mentioned previously as well as being interviewed by trained RFT volunteers and professionals affiliated with the local school. RFT will conduct outreach throughout the schools in the community to inform students, parents and educators of the benefits of participation in the program. RFT employs a variety of opportunities and personalized encouragement and assistance to motivate students and help them achieve the goals set out above. A cornerstone of the program (and, for the students, likely the most memorable) is the initial Summer Program, which takes place in a student's first year of participation. In this part of the program groups of students have traveled to a college, military service academy, or other appropriate and interesting venue, where they engaged in activities designed to build self-confidence and teamwork, were exposed to appropriate and approachable role models, and gained a personal appreciation of the opportunities and rewards that education can bring. Some of the people that the students interacted with on these trips, such as graduate students, cadets, midshipmen, and other military personnel, are close enough to the students' own age for them to relate to as peers and visualize themselves in these roles. Not only did the students get the opportunity to see these individuals in interesting, challenging, and exciting positions, they were able to see them proudly and without pretense practicing and aspiring to values such integrity, public service and personal excellence. During the Summer Program, which generally spans about a week, students are divided into teams of five or six, with each team assigned an adult Team Leader: an experienced or well-trained RFT volunteer from the community in which the students live. Team Leaders supervise and work with the students not only to see that they get the most out of the trip, but to develop a personal relationship through which they can help the student in subsequent phases or elements of the RFT program. The shared experiences of the summer trip at a critical juncture in the students' lives forms and secures this bond. After the Trip, Team Leaders continue to guide and assist their students' throughout their high school career, tracking their progress and helping them improve their chances of being accepted to a top college or service academy. Students from across the nation have had the additional benefit of interacting with professionals from the host community who have joined them to deliver motivational speeches several evenings. How Will This Program Benefit Students And Improve Their Overall Quality Of Life? America is a melting pot and Reach For Tomorrow brings people of diverse socioeconomic backgrounds together to live and learn in a challenging environment. Unique concepts and diverse perspectives are introduced through the travel to different cities and living on a college campus with new people. Many of the selected students have never interacted with anyone outside their area, and this increased exposure to people of different cultures is a critical component to greater understanding and coexistence within the evolving urban and small rural areas of our nation, and supports the local school system's mission of empowering students to thrive in an ever changing global community. The Summer Program will allow students from different cultures to interact with students and professionals from other communities to experience the exciting cultures they embody. The initial Summer Program is just the first element of RFT's long term strategy for the students, which builds on the attitudinal and performance improvements generated. A complete monitoring cycle which lasts through high school is planned, encompassing tools such as Pre-SAT and SAT prep courses, internships, scholarship and financial aid resource information, and introduction to career opportunities supplied or supplemented inexpensively through the Internet. The level of familiarity that it enjoys among young people, coupled with its power for information delivery and interactivity, the Internet offers an unparalleled capability for delivering or enhancing many of the follow-up elements of the RFT program, including academic tutoring. Through its own interactive website currently under construction, RFT and Team Leaders can continue to track, communicate with, and assist students throughout their high school years, bringing to their attention the availability of additional programs, job and educational opportunities. Also through the website, we will continue to collect and analyze information on the performance and achievements of participating students. Baseline and longitudinal data on the students' outlook on life, attitude towards education, and motivation towards scholastic achievement and personal excellence are captured using several pre- and post-trip surveys and questionnaires, the results of which are aggregated and analyzed with statistical methods. These surveys and questionnaires also aim to capture positive changes in the students' perspectives on many levels. |