Preparing more boys of color for college, careers: Program proposed at Modesto schools
A mentoring program called Improve Your Tomorrow and aimed at preparing Modesto middle school and high school boys of color for careers may be approved next week by the Modesto City Schools district. A program proposal got an enthusiastic reception from board members at a recent meeting.
Most Black and Latino boys find themselves trapped in a generational cycle that’s called the school to prison pipeline system, according to the Improve Your Tomorrow website. Furthermore, in this system, these boys become high school dropouts, unemployed and commit crimes that lead them to jail.
Improve Your Tomorrow, or IYT, seeks to break boys away from the pipeline by recruiting those with behavioral and attendance issues, as well as boys who aren’t on track to graduate high school or enroll in college, according to its website.
The nonprofit program, which is offered as early as seventh grade but can be started in high school, provides participants with weekly academic support, biweekly mentoring, college advising, fully funded college visits and paid internships for juniors and seniors.
Students can also be a part of the program at a participating community college or university, the website states.
The Modesto City Schools board heard a report on the program at its May 10 meeting. Board Vice President Adolfo Lopez said he’s excited to see the program unfold. “As someone who greatly benefited from mentorship, I really appreciate seeing this,” he said.
Program expanding
IYT co-founder and CEO Michael Lynch told trustees the program has been implemented across 27 schools in Lodi, Sacramento and Stockton.
“Think about IYT like a tool in your tool belt,” he said. “It’s supposed to give young people the maximum opportunity to help them get to or through college.”
The program has proven its success with 99% of IYT participants graduating high school, compared to 73% of Black boys and 79% of Latino boys in California finishing schools without the mentor program, according to the PowerPoint presentation to the board, which is included online in the May 10 meeting agenda.
IYT originally started in 2013 with 17 boys from Valley High School in South Sacramento, according to the its website. Now it works with over 1,000 students via its three programs called IYT College Academy, IYT Continue to Dream Academy and IYT U. The college academy serves middle and high school students, while the Continue to Dream Academy and IYT U work with students at continuation high schools and California State University, Sacramento, respectively.
William Nelson, senior director of school leadership for Modesto City Schools, said the program is not meant to supplant counselors and other mentoring programs like Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID), a nonprofit program that prepares students for college. It’s meant to enhance the work learned through these avenues.
“The idea of the program is to build that connection, but also to provide that ongoing support,” he said during the meeting.
If approved by the board, Nelson said IYT would unfold in Modesto over the next three years, with the first year beginning at Hanshaw Middle School and Downey High School. To start off, 100 boys from Downey and 50 from Hanshaw will be recruited, Lynch said.
In 2022, those programs would continue with the addition of another Modesto high school and feeder middle school that’s yet to be determined. Then in 2023, they would consider adding another high school and middle school.
Nelson said the cost would total $750,000 over three years, with $150,000 being used in the first year, $300,000 the second year and $300,000 the third year. The money would come from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Elementary and Secondary School Emergency (ESSER) fund, according to the board of education agenda.
Mentors reflect mentees
Lynch said IYT hires college students from similar neighborhoods to be program directors, academic mentors and tutors. Employees undergo 140 hours of training over the course of a year.
He also said because they mainly serve Latino and Black students, the staff reflects that. Staffers typically are in their second or third year of college. However, since the program doesn’t have an alumni base, Lynch said they are seeking to recruit students from Modesto Junior College and Stanislaus State to be on staff.
Board member Homero Mejia acknowledged the importance of having a mentor that looks like you. “It speaks to my heart,” he said. “ It matters when you walk into a classroom and they see you and they can see themselves. It just makes a world of difference.”
Board member John Ervin expressed concern over the mentor-to-mentee ratio being one to 25, given that the optimal ratio according to research is one to four.
“We have found that using the credible messenger model… you are able to build a relationship with enough dosage and duration that you can change outcomes although you are not within the one to four model,” Lynch said. The model pairs mentors with mentees who have lived in similar environments, he added.
All board members expressed enthusiasm over the program.
Trustee Cindy Marks said she’s excited to see people from the community getting involved as mentors because they understand the culture and issues within their neighborhoods. “ Let’s do it,” she said.”I’m ready to vote.”
The board members are set to vote on the program at their June 7 meeting.
This story was originally published June 3, 2021 at 1:58 PM.
