September 3, 1998 Contact: Ann Marie Deer Owens (615) 322-2706 annmarie.owens@vanderbilt.edu

TNT's after-school program on right track,

according to VIPPS evaluation

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Parents, teachers and the students themselves are pleased with a neighborhood after-school program in four Metropolitan Nashville public schools, according to a first-year evaluation by the Vanderbilt Institute for Public Policy Studies (VIPPS).

"We were glad to provide our expertise in program evaluation to help Metro determine the effectiveness of this new program for children in under resourced areas," said May Shayne, director of the Center for State and Local Policy at VIPPS.

Metro Council funded the Project for Neighborhood Aftercare beginning in October 1997 in response to a request from Tying Nashville Together. The grassroots coalition of Nashville area congregations saw the need for a safe, supervised environment after school for at-risk students in their own neighborhoods. Project for Neighborhood Aftercare is designed to provide academic, recreational and cultural enrichment at no charge to families.

"Since the program has been in a learning phase the first year, it would have been inappropriate for us to attempt to measure academic success or reduced delinquency," Shayne said. "Nonetheless, teachers said that the program improved students' attitudes about getting their homework done and succeeding in school." Shayne noted that families gave the program high marks in face-to-face interviews as well as phone surveys.

The four participating schools for the 1997-98 school year were: King's Lane Middle, Lockeland Middle, Rose Park Middle and Kirkpatrick Elementary. After an interim assessment from VIPPS was completed, Metro Council refunded the program for the new school year and approved expansion to Apollo, Johnson and Bellevue middle schools.

Members of the VIPPS evaluation team included Mark Lipsey, professor of public policy and co-director of the Center for Evaluation Research and Methodology; Richard D. King Jr., research associate; and Shayne. The Office of University Relations funded the evaluation.

Researchers found that the intended goal of enrolling a large number of students from low-income families was met. The program, which could serve up to 240 children, reached about 7 percent of the eligible population last year. Phone surveys with 50 eligible but non-participating families showed that transportation was a major obstacle to participation in after-school programs.

"Even for students who live within a relatively short walking distance from the after-school program, transportation may require adult supervision," said Lipsey. "This is particularly true for the neighborhoods where most of the sites are located."

Students who were asked about their reasons for not enrolling in the program cited transportation issues, parental choice or enrollment in another program or sport. Some children said their parents wanted them to be home doing chores or that being latchkey children gave them more freedom to do as they wish.

While the on-site survey of parents found only one child to be at risk of being home alone if the after-school program did not operate, teachers gave conflicting information. Of the 153 students questioned by their teachers, almost 36 percent said they did not have adult supervision after school.

Program objectives included: providing a safe haven for children in their neighborhood between 3 and 6 p.m. on school days, enhancing academic performance, decreasing delinquency and offering culturally enriching experiences.

According to the evaluation, an example of one of the program's best practices occurred when the staff had a consistent theme, such as "who is showing the best behavior today?" Those students who were behaving well would receive special privileges, such as the first samples from a cooking demonstration.

"Granting privileges maintains a format for social comment and bonding between staff and students," the evaluation noted.

The evaluation team found that it would be difficult to measure the program's prevention of delinquency "due to the technical challenges associated with evaluating delinquency outcomes in a relatively small, non-intensive program that serves mostly pre-teenage non-delinquent youth." However, the program will collect student case record information that will enable linkage of the after-care program files with Metro Department of Education records. This should enable measurement of the program's impact on student academic performance.

While parents said they would be willing to pay a fee for the after school program, they qualified their response by stating "it would depend on the amount." Researchers said the on-site, face-to-face interview might have inhibited parent responses that could be deemed as critical of the program or of their willingness to be good parents.

-VU-

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