Capstone template for EDD revised with templete

Appendix B

The Impact Of Incorporating Youth Business Institutes (YBI) In High schools And The Immediate Effects They Have On Student Achievement

By

Tara R. Nesbitt

Submitted in partial fulfillment of the

Requirements for the Doctorate in Education

Maryville University

St. Louis, Missouri

May 2017

Cohort #20

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CAPSTONE INSTRUCTOR SIGNATURE PAGE

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DEDICATION

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ABSTRACT

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Table of Contents

ABSTRACT............................................................................. iii

TABLE OF CONTENTS..........................................................iv

LIST OF TABLES/FIGURES...................................................vi

CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION

Background and rationale............................................1

Purpose/Problem Statement........................................5

Research Question.......................................................6

Definitions.....................................................................7

Summary......................................................................8

CHAPTER TWO: REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE

Purpose of YBI

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

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LIST OF TABLES/FIGURES

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CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

In today’s inner city high schools, many reasons are stated as to why, and if

inner city students will graduate on time and pursue a post-secondary education,

attain a promising career, seek a trade or receive some kind of vocational

training that will lead to job placement. With the increasing rate of high school

drop outs along with the lack of motivation to achieve anything further than a high

school diploma, many students who graduate are unsure of exactly what they will

do after graduation.

Over the past several years, many community based programs have been

put in place that are geared to help support student achievement by incorporating

youth business institutes that are designed to help graduating senior attain jobs

at prominent TJX Companies. These companies include TJ Maxx, Marshalls and

Home Goods retail stores and are in full compliance with providing graduating

seniors with an opportunity they may not otherwise have. The overall goal is to

enrich the school curriculum and help support academic achievement. Let’s now

look at how to address the problem at had along with addressing a few solutions

to this problem.

PRESENTATION OF THE PROBLEM

GLOBAL

The TJX Foundation is part of a huge charitable initiative that focuses on

enriching the live of its Associates as well as the customers and neighbors who

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live and work in the communities. Collectively, the YBI focuses its charitable

efforts in a number of areas, including The TJX foundation, corporate

partnerships, community programs, and Associate volunteerism. In addition, TJX

in the United States, Canada and Europe have may longstanding in-store

fundraising and community initiatives that support causes and nonprofit

organizations such as churches and schools (tjx.com).

Many of the community programs focus on youth and youth adults, where

they foster affiliations with schools, universities, and educational groups to help

prepare students for graduation and transition into the workforce. Two of YBI’s

larger initiatives are the Youth Business Institute (YBI) in the U.S. and the Get

Into Retail program in Europe (tjx.com). In 2013, the Foundation funded over

1,800 nonprofit organizations

LOCAL

In comparison to when I was in high school with the way schools are

operating now, education has changed in many ways which has caused a shift in

how education is learned as well as taught. Students have become more

disengaged and teachers are not as motivated to teach due to lack of

administrative support and total burn out. There has been a need to educate

students beyond the classroom in order to regain student engagement as well as

take a burden off of classroom teachers. More educational programs and local

community based organizations have come to the rescue of students and

teachers and has been a light of hope and inspiration in providing an alternative

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way of learning that not only engages the student but motivates them to want to

achieve more than just a high school education, but a means to secure a place in

society that contribute to their livelihood as well feeling they are actually

contributing to society in a positive way.

YBI, (Youth Business Institute) is a community based program that offers

a business or life-skills curriculum that supports schools administration such as

Superintendents and district wide Principals and Teachers. The focus is on

disconnected youth within a diverse school environment that has a high

percentage of low-income students receiving free/reduced lunch, consistent

results of low test scores that are below state/national average and of course low

student graduation rates. YBI is part of the TJX companies’ marketing strategy is

to increase student achievement within an eleven week span. This is to ensure

that the ability to involve approximately 20-25 store, district and regional

associates to lead, implement and execute the program.

For the past three years, YBI has been alive and well in the St. Louis

Public School District, and its pilot schools are Roosevelt and Vashon High

schools. It’s been apparent for these past few years that YBI is committed to

working with “disadvantaged” youth in communities considered to be

underserved, and where there is a presence of TJX stores.

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HISTORY OF PROBLEM

The fact is that many inner city students see a lot of negative things either

at home as well as in the streets, along with not seeing any way out of the hard

knocks routine. Teachers can only understand so much, especially if they can’t

really relate to students other than just in the classroom. The struggle to educate

becomes a challenge especially if classroom management is an issue. Reaching

out and using resources for a variety of ways to incorporate teaching and

learning, is one way that teachers across the board are seizing the opportunities

to provide networking and extended mentoring for students who are indeed

looking for and deserving of lucrative careers that are related to career and

technical education institutes.

There has been an overwhelming amount of school consolidations with

the intent of lowering district costs and balancing district budgets in order to

formulate, maintain and advance educational institutions. With this need being an

intricate part of whether or not a school district will provide extracurricular

activities or after school programs that will foster student achievement and

growth, many at risk school districts are targeted as producing low achieving and

intellectually challenged graduates. This has been and continues to be an issue

that has been amongst the African American communities for many years. Due

to the fact that at risk school district face many challenges regarding meeting

district and state educational standards, outside resources and educational

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programs are offered in order to close the achievement gaps and make the

playing field for high school graduate fair and realistic.

Psychologically, many inner city students have developed a “crab in the

bucket” mentality or, have just given up on attaining any advanced learning after

high school. This in part is among other factors and can contribute to the

“dumbing down” of education as well as making the journey to achieving a high

school education, a difficult task for some students. It is a fact that personal drive,

encouragement, motivation and the will to succeed are all factors in determining

how hard a student will work to achieve and meet the goal of graduating high

school but, what determines if and when these factors will diminish into a sea of

despair and hopelessness; how can this change?

Educational resources come in all forms and are created for the sole

purpose of adding creativity and motivation to the learning process. There are

many resources available for all learning levels and most of these resources are

free of charge. One of the benefits of working in an at risk school district is the

opportunity to learn about and introduce these resources to administration and to

my students. One in particular is the Youth Business Institute which I’ve found to

be a very engaging and motivating community program that focuses on just one

facet of student achievement by way of creating job placement to high school

seniors after graduation. The need to provide post-secondary students with a

hopeful future beyond high school has become more common in comparison to

what use to be the norm in early years.

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Due to changing economic times, low academic testing levels and the

overall status of at risk families, the key to overcoming the struggle of educating

disengaged students and increasing academic levels lies in knowing the cause

and effect of and how and when this dilemma of began; the dilemma of

disengaged students and low student achievement.

CURRENT STATUS OF THE PROBLEM

School districts today are becoming more willing to accept programs such as

YBI not only for recognition among competing district for having good community

programs, but also in aiding in keeping student attendance in good standing in

order to receive government funding. It’s not just good teachers and school

administrators who have all of the control as to keeping the interest of the

students, but the classes that are offered, the extracurricular activities and the

overall reputation of the school district itself.

YBI has been active in the St. Louis Public School District for the past

three years, respectively at Roosevelt and Vashon High schools. These two

schools were chosen to be the test pilot schools just to see if the program would

benefit the target market in which the program was designed to assist. Although

these schools are just two of many, the overall problem at hand is across the

board globally. As YBI continues to expand and promote student achievement in

high schools across the world, the overall mission of the program seems to

making positive strides in the right direction

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RESEARCH QUESTION

1. Can incorporating YBI programs in high schools, have a social effect on high school graduates and student achievement?

DEFINITIONS

YBI- Youth Business InstituteTJX- TJ Maxx Companies IncorporatedSLPS- St. Louis Public Schools

SUMMARY

All high school educational and community based programs which are

geared to increasing the educational and social welfare of at risk inner city youth

are becoming more than an afterschool initiative. Over the years, implementing

these programs has increased the overall well-being of student life, sometimes

having a life-long, positive impact on their lives. Internships and job placement

during a student’s senior year in high school, equips them not only with social

and soft skills, but instills in them a since of pride and responsibility for the

advancement of their economic, educational and social achievements. Youth

Business Institutes are becoming more and more visible around the world and as

they continue to produce working class citizen in the workforce, they are also

contributing to bridging the achievement gap among high school students.

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CHAPTER TWO

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CHAPTER THREE

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CHAPTER FOUR

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CHAPTER FIVE

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REFERENCES

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APPENDIX A

APPENDIX B