Graduation C.A.P.

Graduation C.A.P.
Analee M. Phang
The University of Georgia

Graduation C.A.P.

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Table of Contents

I.

Program Overview

p. 3

a. Program Title

p. 3

b. Target Audience

p. 3

c. Program Location

p. 3

d. FLE Content Areas

p. 4

Issue Analysis and Program Goals

p. 4

a. Issue

p. 4

b. Theories

p. 5

c. Scholarly Research

p. 6

d. Overall Goals and SMART Objectives

p. 9

e. Logic Model

p. 11

Participant Needs Analysis

p. 12

a. Needs/Interests of Target Audience

p. 12

Program Design and Implementation Plan

p. 15

a. Existing Programs/Curricula

p. 15

b. New Program/Curricula (Overview of Program/Module Descriptions)

p. 17

c. Session Description

p. 21

d. Challenges

p. 23

e. Marketing

p. 23

V.

Program Evaluation

p. 24

VI.

References

p. 27

VII.

Appendices

p. 29

a. Appendix A: PowerPoint Slides

p. 29

b. Appendix B: Flyer

p. 31

II.

III.

IV.

Graduation C.A.P.

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Program Overview

Graduation Counseling And Prep (C.A.P.) is a ten month program in which at-risk teens
and their parents/guardians participate to create a better understanding of how the student may
achieve a college education, while also bettering their familial relationships and overall wellbeing for the teen.
Target Audience
The audience being served by Graduation C.A.P. would be middle to lower class families
that are unaware of the processes of getting a child into college. More specifically, adolescents in
public schools that are at risk of not graduating high school, do not have the funding to afford
college, or are going to be first-generation college students. The program will also focus on
parent involvement with their adolescent, so the family as a whole would be the target of the
program.
Program Location
Graduation C.A.P. will be based out of Atlanta, GA located in Fulton County due to a
high percentage of minorities and a lower percentage of high school graduates. Georgia holds
one of the lowest high school graduation rates in the country at 71% (GaDOE, 2013).
Comparatively the national average has reached 81% as of 2012 (NCES, 2014). Fulton County
specifically has a graduation rate just above the state average at 75.5% (GaDOE, 2013). With
Blacks making up 54% of the population in Atlanta and 25% of the overall population of Atlanta
being classified as below the poverty line, it is an area that could benefit greatly from productive,
family focused programming catered towards lower and middle class minorities (Census, 2014).

Graduation C.A.P.

Family Life Education Content Areas

The Family Life Education content areas that will be covered throughout the program
include human growth and development across the lifespan, parent education, internal dynamics
of families, interpersonal relationships, and family resource management (Bredehoft, 2009, p.
14). Graduation C.A.P. will cover these content areas by discussing the growth and changes
adolescents are experiencing on their journey through middle and high school (human growth
and development across the lifespan), educating parents about the different paths their child can
take post-graduation (parent education), supporting the establishment of healthy and open
relationships between teens and their parents (internal dynamics), helping facilitate adolescents
peer relationships and parents interactions (intimate relationships), and by providing
information to adolescents and parents about various aspects of the college application process
(family resource management). Throughout the eight month program all of these content areas
will be covered multiple times through various topics and activities.
Issue Analysis and Program Goals
Issue
The issue being faced in the Atlanta school district is a severe one. In this district only
58.6% of students are graduating from high school in 4 years compared to 75.5% in Fulton
County and 71.5% in the state of Georgia (GaDOE, 2013). Graduation C.A.P. will be addressing
this issue by promoting high school graduation and college attendance by providing teens and
their parents with the information and support needed to keep students on track for graduation
and prepared for the college admissions process.
Research shows that low high school graduation rates directly correlate with adverse
effects on teens like more risky behavior, delinquency, higher risk of teen pregnancy, and lower

Graduation C.A.P.

economic outcomes. Its been found that approximately 37% of African-American and Latino
teen girls cite pregnancy as the reason they dropped out of school (Shuger, 2012). When
delinquency is considered, one may take into account the fact that compared to high school
graduates, dropouts are 72% more likely to be unemployed (McKeon, 2006). One may also
account for the almost 80% of individuals in prison that never earned a high school diploma
(McKeon, 2006). Increasing the graduation rates in communities such as the Atlanta school
district is not an individual problem, but effects all those in the community. Nearly $260,000 in
earnings, taxes, and productivity are lost per student that drops out of high school (Shuger,
2012). To put that in perspective, if students who dropped out of the Class of 2011 had
graduated from high school, the nations economy would likely benefit from nearly $154 billion
in additional income over the course of their lifetimes, (Shuger, 2012). The graduation rates in
school districts across the country represent the state of the surrounding communities, and taking
the time to improve these rates can have immediate, positive effects on the communities
surrounding these schools.
Theories
To truly understand how individuals create patterns within families and how families play
a role in the bigger picture of the community, family systems theory and Bronfenbrenners
ecological systems theory will be used throughout the development of material for Graduation
C.A.P. Family systems theory is a perspective on family functioning that emphasizes
interconnections among different family relationships, which within Graduation C.A.P. the
focus would be on the parent-child relationship (Steinberg, 2011, p. 123). This theory would be
used within the program to help establish better relationships amongst the parents and
adolescents, while teaching each how to interact with the other in the most positive way possible.

Graduation C.A.P.

A big part of Graduation C.A.P. is teaching parents how to interact with their adolescent in a
constructive way and teach them how their role in their childs life is an important and integral
one. Now, Bronfenbrenners ecological systems theory is focused on the broad context in which
development occurs, (Steinberg, 2011, p. 9). This incorporates not only how adolescents
interact with their family, but also how they interact with their peer groups, schools, and society
as a whole. Since Graduation C.A.P. will be incorporating parent involvement, peer support
groups, and school resources, this model will be very beneficial to the program.
Scholarly Research
Adolescents are the future of our country, but to properly educate and enrich them with
the skills needed to be productive, contributing members of society it will take not only a
supportive family, but a supportive community. Research has found that lack of connection and
understanding between adolescents, parents, and school personnel creates a negative outcome for
students, and hinders their use of the resources that they have access to (Mitchell, 2007). Higher
student achievement has been found in schools with high levels of outreach to parents, many
times however minority parents do not feel as if they are being reached out to in the appropriate
way or at all (Mitchell, 2007). Minority students are then not reaching their full potential for
achievement and are being classified by their disadvantages and disabilities instead of what they
do have going for them (Bryan & Henry 2008).
Bryan & Henry (2008) found that even though minority parents may believe they have a
strong relationship with their child, but do not feel able to take full advantage of resources and
community support outside of immediate family. This research found that teaching school
personnel how to use strengths-based techniques would allow for more growth and achievement
from at-risk students (Bryan & Henry, 2008). Bemak & Cornely (2002) looked into ways to

Graduation C.A.P.

incorporate family-based focused interventions to increase achievement of students from

marginalized families. They found that creating environments that welcome families,
understanding differences in values, fostering healthy family interdependence, ensuring
authentic collaboration, and embracing family learning all contributed to higher achievement
for at-risk youth (Bemak & Cornely, 2002). These strategies used together will create
atmospheres that facilitate the furthering of minority students achievement.
To increase graduation rates and enlighten students about the options they have for
reaching college and attaining higher levels of education, all of these strategies should be utilized
in the appropriate ways. Through Graduation C.A.P., the hope is to be able to utilize this
research and have multiple aspects within the program to hit each point of concern and improve
upon it.
CFLE Content Areas Addressed

Human Growth and Development Across the Lifespan

o Understanding of the developmental stages of individuals in families throughout
the lifespan. Based on knowledge of physical, emotional, cognitive, social, moral,
and personality aspects (NCFR, 2011, p. 1).
o The program will incorporate sessions for parents about the emotional, cognitive,
social, moral, and personality changes that their adolescents may go through in
order to establish a better understanding of their teen.

Parent Education
o An understanding of how parents teach, guide, and influence children and
adolescents as well as the changing nature, dynamics and needs of the
parent/child relationship across the lifespan (NCFR, 2011, p. 2).

Graduation C.A.P.

o Parent education will be important as parents learn how their influence affects
their adolescent and how they can play a role in supporting their child through the
college application process and college experience.

Internal Dynamics of Families

o Having an understanding of family strengths and weaknesses and how family
members relate to each other (NCFR, 2011, p. 1).
o The program will emphasize adolescents and parents working together more as
they learn more about each other. This will be fostered through the bi-weekly
sessions that will have an hour of family time workshops to strengthen internal
family relationships.

Interpersonal Relationships
o An understanding of the development and maintenance of interpersonal
relationships (NCFR, 2011, p. 1).
o Relationships between parents and between adolescents and their peers will also
be a focus of the program. Teaching how to have healthy, positive relationships
not only with ones teen or parent, but also outside of the family will help grow
relationship skills and show how these relationships also affect adolescents.

Family Resource Management

o An understanding of the decisions individuals and families make about
developing and allocating resources including time, money, material assets,
energy, friends, neighbors, and space, to meet their goals. (NCFR, 2011, p. 2).

Graduation C.A.P.

o An ongoing aspect of the program will be the discussion of college attendance

and will incorporate multiple resources needed to get families on the right track to
graduation and college attendance.
Teaching Goals and SMART Objectives
A. Goal #1: Students and parents will gain more knowledge about the college admissions
process.
a. Objective #1(Short-term): 80% of students and parents will know that grades
acquired from the fall semester of 9th grade to the spring semester of 11th grade
will be the grades initially seen by college admissions officers within the first 10
sessions of the program.
b. Objective #2 (intermediate): 75% of students will know the GPA, SAT, and
course requirements for their top 3 college choices by the end of the program.
c. Objective #3 (intermediate): 75% of parents will be aware of the application fees
associated with their childs top 3 choices of colleges by the end of the program.
d. Objective #4 (Long-term): 55% of students will apply to at least one college by
the end of fall semester their senior year of high school.
B. Goal #2: Students and parents will feel more supported by peers & community and more
informed and connected with school personnel.
a. Objective #1 (Short-term): 90% of students will know the names and contact
information of 2 trusted adults and 3 trusted peers they can go to when in need, all
in addition to the name and contact information of their assigned guidance
counselor within the first 10 sessions of the program.

Graduation C.A.P.

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b. Objective #2 (Short-term): 75% of parents will have the name and contact
information of their childs assigned guidance counselor, and will commit to
contacting them at least once per semester to get an update on their childs
academic progress within the first 5 sessions of the program.
c. Objective #3 (Intermediate): 65% of students will have a plan to become involved
in an extra-curricular activity in their school within the first 5 sessions of the
program.
C. Goal #3: Parents will feel more aware of and be more involved in their childs
development.
a. Objective #1(intermediate): 70% of parents will set aside time once a week for
family bonding in their household by the end of the program.
b. Objective #2 (Intermediate): 75% of parents will report a time their child reached
out to them for advice or support, and they were able to put time aside to discuss
the issue with their child within a year of finishing the program.
c. Objective #3 (Intermediate): 65% of parents will attend at least one sporting
event, awards ceremony, parent-teacher conference, etc. for their child each
semester by the end of the program.

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Program Logic Model

Situation: Qualified students arent going to college because of lack of knowledge and support for getting a higher education causing
thousands of brilliant minds to go untapped, causing greater likelihood of delinquency, teen pregnancy, and dropping out.
Inputs
Activities
Volunteers and
Staff
Guest
speakers/prese
nters
Money to
support
program
upkeep, pay
staff, rent
facility, and pay
presenters
(Government
funding/grants)
Facility to host
weekly
meetings
Materials for
activities/prese
ntations
Support from
local schools
Food donations
from local
businesses
Partnership
with local
colleges

Outcomes

Outputs

Adolescent
support groups
that meet and
practice relational
skills and form
support network
Activities that
emphasize high
school completion
and college or
technical school
attendance

Participation

Adolescents (ages
13-19) in public
schools that are at
risk of not
graduating high
school, do not have
the funding to afford
college, or are going
to be first-generation
college students

Presenters that
speak with parents
and students about
family needs and
connectedness

Parents of at-risk
adolescents,
immigrant parents,
and/or parents
that want a better
understanding of
how to keep their
child on track for
college

Assumptions:

Medium

Students will have a

list of additional
people to go to for
support in addition to
school counselors
Students will know
the necessary steps
to take to apply to
college (seniors will
know necessary
deadlines and
requirements)
Parents will know the
emotional and social
developmental stages
of their adolescent

Field trips to local

colleges
Sessions and
activities that
explain college
admissions process
and promote
relational skills

Short

Participants will want to attend college or will be able to find the means to
overcome barriers to their college attendance
Participants will be willing to share experiences and be open in group
settings
School personnel will be able to work with program

Parents will know how

they can and cant help
adolescent with the
college application
process

Long

Within 6 months
students will express
a feeling of stronger,
supportive
relationships with
family, mentors, and
friends

By end of program
students will express
a desire to finish
high school and will
have a better idea of
their goals for after
graduation

Within 6 years of
program participants
will obtain higher
level of education
and find greater
economic stability

Over a 6 month
period parents will
spend 50% more
time with their
adolescents

External Factors:

Parents: Income level, education level, marital status, job status,

transportation, personal view of college
Attendance by students AND parents
Family stressors
Commitment from donators

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Participant Needs Analysis

Needs/Interests of Target Audience

To properly serve the community in Atlanta it is important to learn what their specific
needs are. The target audience is at-risk adolescents and their parents. The main concerns that I
have observed for this community would be a lack of strengths-based support from schools and
lack of knowledge about the options available to them post-graduation (Bryan & Henry, 2008).
To properly evaluate what the target audience would want out of the program I would use
a series of surveys, focus groups, and interviews to gather information about the communitys
needs. Surveys would be given to students for more general data about students desire to attend
college and information on time spent with school counselors. Surveys would be taken by
students in their homeroom class, study hall, or during their advisement period. After collecting
responses to surveys, students would be chosen to join a small focus group where we would
delve into more details about reasons for their post-graduation plans and ask what information
they would want to learn from a program such as Graduation C.A.P. Focus groups would be held
during students lunch period and lunch would be provided as an incentive to attend. Students in
focus groups would then be asked to invite their parents to come in for a similar focus group that
would be held in the evening. Parents would be asked about their experiences with school
personnel, their aspirations for their child, and how much time they would be willing to commit
to a program such as Graduation C.A.P. School counselors throughout the Atlanta school district
would also be interviewed to find out what they believe the students needed most, and to see how
they would want to be involved in the program. After these sessions, families that were seen as
ideal for the program would be recruited by school counselors, while marketing for open
enrollment would also start in the community.

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Student Survey
1. Grade:_____
2. Age:_____
3. Graduation Date:__________
4. Do you wish to attend college?

Yes

No

5. If No, what do you plan on doing after high school?

Attend technical school

Work

Other: ____________

6. How much time per month do you spend speaking with your school counselor about
graduation or post-graduation?
0-1hour

2-4hours

5-8hours

8+hours

7. How much time per month do you wish you spent speaking to your school counselor
about graduation or post-graduation?
0-1hour

2-4hours

5-8hours

8+hours

Student Focus Group Questions

1. Do you plan on graduating on time? If not, why?
2. What are your goals in life? Do they include college? Why or why not?
3. What are the deterrents for attending college? What would help you see it as a more
desirable prospect?
4. What do you know about the college admissions process?
5. Who do you talk to about your post-graduation plans?
6. What support do you have from your school, family, friends, or community for your postgraduation plans? What support do you want to have from these people?
7. Do you feel that you have an open relationship with your parents? Why or why not?

Graduation C.A.P.

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8. Would you be willing to commit time to the program if it helped you reach your goals?
How much time?
Parent Focus Group Questions
1. Do you believe your child is going to graduate on time? If not, why?
2. What are your aspirations for your child?
3. Do you want your child to attend college? Why or why not?
4. Are you aware of your childs goals for after graduation?
5. Do you feel like you have an open relationship with your child? Why or why not?
6. Do you feel like you have a positive relationship with your childs school counselor? If
not, why?
7. What support do you have from family, the school, or the community that would help
you and your child reach their goals? What support do you want to have from these
groups?
8. Would you be willing to commit the time to the program if it helped your child reach
their goals? How much time?
School Counselor Interview Questions
1. How much time do you spend with students that are not on track to graduate on time?
2. How much time do you spend with students who are on track?
3. What type of information are at-risk students getting about their options after high school,
and more specifically about college options?
4. Are counselors using strengths-based techniques to interact with students?
5. What type of support can the school and counselors provide to the program?

Graduation C.A.P.

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Program Design and Implementation Plan

Existing Programs
There are multiple existing programs that focus on preparing minority adolescents for
college. Two such programs are Exito and College Bound. These programs hold many
similarities and also differences that can be learned from when formatting and organizing
Graduation C.A.P.
The Exito program based out of Philadelphia, PA is focused on keeping high-risk youth
on track to graduation through out-of-school time supports (Hartmann, Good, & Edmunds
2011). This program recruits students in the 8th and 9th grades to join a 4-day a week after school
program, which provides them with one-on-one attention from tutors, mentors, and school
personnel (Hartmann et al, 2011). It also allows them to interact in smaller group settings with
peers from similar Latino backgrounds (Hartmann et al, 2011). The research found that each day
spent in the program directly correlated to an increase in school attendance and decrease in
amount of participating students failing math or English (Hartmann et al, 2011). They utilize a
project-based learning approach to keep students engaged, while applying valuable skills and
academic principles (Hartmann et al, 2011). Exito and Graduation C.A.P. share similarities in
their philosophies and underlying goal to reduce dropout rates and increase graduation rates in
underserved communities. The small groups and one-on-one attention used to serve the students
is also a commonality between the two programs. Though we share similar goals, many changes
would need to be done to accommodate the different audiences being reached. Graduation
C.A.P. has an emphasis on parent involvement, which would mean a need to accommodate the
schedules of not only the students, but also the parents. Bi-weekly weekend sessions allow for
parents to stay involved without any major disruptions to their routines. Another major

Graduation C.A.P.

16

difference would be a greater emphasis on counseling and growing healthy relationships within
families and between participants.
The College Bound program has found great success as well with their program catered
towards underserved students in Washington D.C. With a 95% college acceptance rate from its
participants, College Bound has seen how mentorships can play a very supportive role in teens
following through with their goals (Lewis, 2009). Participants in College Bound are not
recruited, but sign up at their own will, which could have an effect on the percentage of students
that are already planning on attending college before joining (Lewis, 2009). Though a different
strategy from Exito and Graduation C.A.P., it still provides a resource to an underserved
community that could be beneficial to the adolescents in these areas. College Bounds focus is on
providing local students with access to mentors who are college educated professionals and
willing to commit at least 2 hours per week to meet with their mentees (Lewis, 2009). In addition
to mentor relationships, emphasis is placed on exposing its participants to the various college
and career options available to them (Lewis, 2009). Showing students what the college
experience could be like for them with field trips to various colleges, where students can gain
both academic and social exposure, is another vital aspect of this particular program (Lewis,
2009). Exposing students to their options for their future is an important similarity between
College Bound and Graduation C.A.P. Another important similarity is the emphasis on creating
multiple support systems for the program participants. College Bound acts as one support in
addition to family and schools, as most participants come into the program with a desire to attend
college and some drive to find out more information about their options (Lewis, 2009).
Graduation C.A.P. will be focused on establishing support systems for students that do not
currently have one. Differences similar to the differences found with Exito also include the lack

Graduation C.A.P.

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of attention paid to students parents. A greater emphasis on counseling and familial

relationships will be the foundation of Graduation C.A.P.s program.
Program Curricula
As described previously, Graduation C.A.P. will be a multi-session program spanning over
the 10-months of the year that correlate with the Atlanta school district calendar. Due to breaks
and transition periods, there will be eight modules that have overarching themes for a month long
period. Within each module students will meet 4 times, every Saturday morning between 10am
and 1pm at Georgia State University in the Student*University Center. Parents will meet biweekly at the same time and place for sessions catered towards their needs.

Modules
1. Introduction to program/Planning for the future/Leadership (September)
a. Student/Parent Session #1: Introduce the layout and general plan for the
school year; Find out more about parents, while they also find out more
about each other; Split students into small support groups to start
counseling type environment
b. Student Individual Help: Establish relationship between staff and students,
while learning about their current class schedules and activities
c. Student/Parent Session #2: Parents learn about developmental stages of
their teen; students work in small groups to discuss leadership skills and
future plans
d. Student Individual Help: Incorporate tutoring and start brainstorming for
possible volunteer activities for students; Start lists of trusted individuals
in their lives

Graduation C.A.P.

18

2. College admissions process (October)

a. Student/Parent Session #1: Begin working with students to find out what
future plans are; Meet with parents about their aspirations for children and
how they play a role
b. Student Individual Help: Work with seniors/juniors to research colleges,
careers, etc.; Work with students to find extra-curricular activities they are
interested in
c. Student/Parent Session #2: Work with parents to get them familiar with
their childs goals and plan first meeting with childs school counselor;
Work with students to refine top college/career choices
d. Student Individual Help: Meet with students individually about midterm
report cards; continue planning volunteer project for the spring
3. Organization (November)
a. Student/Parent Session #1: Discuss college application deadlines; Discuss
meetings with school counselors; Students discuss how they are managing
time and assignments in school (small groups)
b. Student Individual Help: Help seniors with college application essays;
continue providing tutoring and planning for volunteer project
c. Student/Parent Session #2: Parents discuss how they organize their
schedules around their childrens; Students meet in small groups
d. Student Individual Help: N/a (Thanksgiving Break; *Small group leaders
can choose to meet with small groups if they find necessary)
4. Financing college (January)

Graduation C.A.P.

19
a. Student/Parent Session #1: Discuss options for funding college
(scholarships, grants, work-study, financial aid, etc.);
b. Student Individual Help: Prepare students for college visit day
c. Student/Parent Session #2: College Visit Day!
d. Student Individual Help: Discuss college visit and continue planning for
volunteer day

5. Relational skills (February)

a. Student/Parent Session #1: Parents learn about creating a safe space and
communication techniques with adolescent; Students learn about
communication techniques in small groups; Parent-child joint session for
communication activity
b. Student Individual Help: Continue providing tutoring
c. Student/Parent Session #2: Parents work on communication with each
other (other family member involved in raising children); Students discuss
healthy dating relationships
d. Student Individual Help: Take personality/strengths tests with small
groups
6. Career planning (March)
a. Student/Parent Session #1: Discuss majors/career goals with students that
correlate to strengths and interests; Discuss strengths and interests with
parents
b. Student Individual Help: Get together final volunteer day materials and
information

Graduation C.A.P.

20
c. Student/Parent Session #2: Discuss how parents can help adolescents
attain volunteer experience and job experience
d. Student Individual Help: Volunteer Project Day!

7. Stress management/Empathy (April)

a. Student/Parent Session #1: Parents discuss difference between internal and
external family stressors; Students discuss what stressors they deal with
b. Student Individual Help: Discussion about volunteer day; provide tutoring
c. Student/Parent Session #2: Discussion of empathy with parents; Student
small group discussion about empathy; Student-Parent joint session with
stress activity
d. Student Individual Help: Get seniors prepared for graduation Send Off;
Continue providing tutoring
8. Fostering healthy home environment (May)
a. Student/Parent Session #1: Discuss dealing with child leaving for college;
how to keep home environment as a safe space; Younger students make
graduation cards/gifts for Seniors
b. Student Individual Help: Seniors meet with small groups before Send
Off; students present seniors with graduation cards/gifts
c. Student/Parent Session #2: Send off for graduating Seniors
d. Student Individual Help: Small groups meet for last time for summer
(*Plan any group activities for over the summer break)

Graduation C.A.P.

21

Session Description: Module 7-Session C

The first half of the session will consist of students meeting with their small groups and
discussing their personal definitions of empathy. Small groups would have been separated by age
at the beginning of the program, so discussions will be age appropriate and match with each
groups developmental level. While students are meeting in their small groups, parents will be in
the Speakers Auditorium with the module leader also discussing empathy. There will be a
break after an hour, and after the break students will join their parents in the auditorium for
discussion and an activity about stress and empathy1.
Lesson Plan for Small Group Leaders
Introduce topic: Empathy
Recap from last session:
o What is stress? The degree of pressure exerted on the family to alter the
strategies it employs to accomplish its basic tasks (Anderson & Sabatelli,
2010, p. 33)
o How do you deal with stress?
Definition of Empathy: the ability to understand and share the feelings of another
(Google)
Discussion:
o How does stress affect your family?
o How do you express empathy for others stress?
o Definition of Coping: the enactment of strategies that minimize the stress
and keep the family functioning in an efficient and effective matter
(Anderson & Sabatelli, 2010, p. 36)
1

See Appendix A for PowerPoint slides

Graduation C.A.P.

22
o How can your family practice better coping skills?

Lesson Plan for Module 7 Leader

Introduce topic: Empathy
Recap from last session:
o What is stress? The degree of pressure exerted on the family to alter the
strategies it employs to accomplish its basic tasks (Anderson & Sabatelli,
2010, p. 33)
o How do you deal with stress?
Definition of Empathy: the ability to understand and share the feelings of another
(Google)
Discussion:
o How does stress affect your family?
o How do you express empathy for your childs stress?
o Definition of Coping: the enactment of strategies that minimize the stress
and keep the family functioning in an efficient and effective matter
(Anderson & Sabatelli, 2010, p. 36)
o How can your family practice better coping skills?
Module 7-Session C Agenda: Stress Management and Empathy
10am: Parents and students arrive at Georgia State and meet in Speakers
Auditorium for Welcome message and student dismissal to meeting rooms.
10:30am: Students meet with small groups in meeting rooms and begin
discussions on empathy with small group leaders/Simultaneously, parents stay in
Speakers Auditorium and start their discussion on empathy with module leader

Graduation C.A.P.

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11:30am: Break for both students and parents (Lunch provided)

12pm: Students led back to Speakers Auditorium by small group leaders and
meet with their parents for joint discussion and activity.
1pm: Dismissal for the day

Challenges
Every program runs into challenges that make it more difficult to run, but overcoming
those challenges is what makes a program better. Some challenges that Graduation C.A.P. may
face include family attendance consistency, consistent funding from donators, local schools
being willing to work with program, school personnel willing to work on Saturdays,
transportation for families to and from program, affordability of program. We hope to combat
some of these challenges by forming strong contracts with the local schools and with funders,
and combat attendance consistency by providing incentives (such as lunch) for the families. If
transportation seems to be an exceptional problem, we hope to create a partnership with a
company like Uber or Lyft that could possibly reduce fairs for our attendees on Saturdays. We
hope to approach each challenge with a creative mind to find ways to deal with it without
affecting the mission of the program.
Marketing
To reach the targeted audience very strategic marketing would need to be used.
Graduation C.A.P. plans to start the marketing within the middle and high schools in the Atlanta
school district. We will be providing informational sheets to school counselors and
administrators, so that we can recruit students and their families that have shown signs of being
at-risk of not graduating on time. Registration for the program will be done through the school

Graduation C.A.P.

24

counselors. We also want to allow for other families that may be interested in the program to be
able to join, so we will be leaving informational sheets at local YMCAs, after school programs,
and tutoring services to allow for families to join out of their own desire.2 We have thought about
charging a small tuition fee for families that are not recommended to the program by a school
official to offset some costs, but for now we want to provide these services at no cost to the
families that join.
Program Evaluation
To evaluate the effectiveness of our program we will be conducting surveys with parents
and students at the half way point of the program and at the end of the school year. These
surveys will be used for evaluating our ability to reach our short-term and most of our
intermediate goals. Follow up surveys will be e-mailed to participants at the appropriate time to
evaluate additional intermediate and long-term goals. Due to the fact that we will have a
registration packet that collects information about race/ethnicity, age, gender, children attending
program, and income level this information will be kept to a minimum on the evaluation surveys.
Evaluations for short-term goals will ask about students and parents knowledge of requirements
for college applications, parent involvement at school, and students and parents contact with
school counselors.

See Appendix B for example of marketing flyer

Graduation C.A.P.

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Student Survey
Please Circle the appropriate answer.
Grade:

8th

Gender:

Female

9th

10th

11th

12th

Male

Guardian Attending Program: One Parent

Both Parents Grandparent(s) Other: __________

Do you know the contact information of your school counselor?

Yes

Do you know the contact information of 2 trusted adults?

No

Yes

No

Have you or do you plan to become involved in an extra-curricular activity at your school?
Yes

No

Do you know what grades will be viewed by college admissions officers when you apply to
college?

Yes

No

Do you know the GPA, SAT, and course requirements for your top 3 college choices?
Yes

No

Have you met with your school counselor in the past 4 months to discuss graduation?
Yes

No

If yes, how many times?

0-1

2-3

4-5

6+

Graduation C.A.P.

26

Parent Survey
Please Circle the appropriate answer.
Grade of child:
Gender:

8th

Female

9th

10th

11th

12th

Male

You are attending: By yourself

With a Spouse/partner

With a family member/friend

Do you know the contact information of your childs school counselor?

Yes

No

Have you contacted your childs school counselor in the past 4 months to get an update on their
progress towards graduation?

Yes

No

Do you know what grades will be viewed by college admissions officers when you apply to
college?

Yes

No

Are you aware of the application fees associated with your childs top 3 college choices?
Yes

No

Have you set aside time once a week for family bonding in your household?

Yes

No

Have you attended at least one sporting event, awards ceremony, parent-teacher conference, or
similar event for you child within the past 4 months?

Yes

No

Graduation C.A.P.

27
References

Anderson, S. A. & Sabatelli, R. M. (2010). Family Interaction: A Multigenerational

Developmental Perspective, 5th Ed. Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
Bemak, F., & Cornely, L. (2002). The SAFI Model as a Critical Link Between Marginalized
Families and Schools: A Literature Review and Strategies for School Counselors. Journal
of Counseling & Development, 80(3), 322.
Bredehoft, D.J. & Walcheski, M.J. (Eds.). (2009). Family life education: Integrating theory and
practice (2nd ed.). Minneapolis, MN: National Council on Family Relations.
Bryan, J., & Henry, L. (2008). Strengths-Based Partnerships: A School-Family-Community
Partnership Approach to Empowering Students. Professional School Counseling, 12(2),
149-156.
Georgia Department of Education. (2013). Georgias high school graduation continues to
increase [Data file]. Retrieved from http://www.gadoe.org/External-Affairs-andPolicy/communications/Pages/PressReleaseDetails.aspx?PressView=default&pid=147
Hartmann, T., Good, D., & Edmunds, K. (2011). Exito: Keeping High-Risk Youth on Track to
Graduation through Out-of-School Time Supports. Afterschool Matters, (14), 20-29.
Lewis, R.M. (2009). The college bound program: Building human capacity in underserved youth
(Unpublished doctoral dissertation). University of Baltimore, Baltimore, Maryland.
Liddell, T. M., & Kurpius, S. R. (2014). Assessing the Impact of a School-Based Group
Approach With Adolescent Males. Journal Of School Counseling, 12(22), 1-33.
McKeon, D. (February 2006). Research talking points on dropout statistics: High school
attendance, graduation, completion, and dropout statistics. Retrieved from
http://www.nea.org/home/13579.htm

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28

Mitchell, N. A. (2007). School-Family-Community Partnerships: Strategies for School

Counselors Working with Caribbean immigrant Families. Professional School
Counseling, 10(4), 399-409.
National Center for Education Statistics. (2014). Public high school graduation rates [Data file].
Retrieved from http://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/indicator_coi.asp
National Council on Family Relations (2011). Family Life Education Content Areas. Retrieved
from
https://www.ncfr.org/sites/default/files/downloads/news/FLE_Content_Areas_2011.pdf
Shuger, L. (2012). Teen pregnancy and high school dropout: What communities are doing to
address these issues. Washington, DC: The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and
Unplanned Pregnancy and Americas Promise Alliance.
Steinberg, L. (2011). Adolescence (9th ed.) New York, NY: McGraw Hill.
United States Census Bureau. (2014). State and county quickfacts: Atlanta (city), Georgia [Data
file]. Available from http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/13/1304000.html

Graduation C.A.P.

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Appendices

Appendix A:

Graduation C.A.P.

30

Graduation C.A.P.

31

Appendix B

Do you want your child to attend college?

Do you feel uninformed by your childs school about requirements?
Is your child struggling to stay on track for graduation?
This program may be just what you are looking for to become more informed and
more involved in your childs academic career! Graduation C.A.P. is here to
enlighten families about how to keep their children on track for graduation and
provide assistance in the college application process through a year-long program
held at Georgia State University.

The program will be held on Saturday mornings and lunch will be provided to participants.
To find out more about the registration process please contact your childs school counselor or
contact us directly at (404) GRADCAP or (404)472-3227.