The Hillyard Youth Collaborative is working to improve educational achievement for students
at Shaw and Gary middle schools in North East Spokane.
The HYC involves three long time partners of Spokane Public Schools: Gonzaga University,
Communities In Schools, and the Boys and Girls Club.
The Hillyard Youth Collaborative is an opportunity for local organizations and the school district
to connect on how to best serve our youth in the community.
It's all around relationships.
And finding that one fit that might work really really well for that student.
The HYC was created by a three year, $400,000 grant through community partners for middle
school success, which is made up of several funding partners.
What we've been able to do in three years is to really get strategic in how to coordinate
these organizations in to a true collaborative so it becomes the whole is greater than the
sum of the parts.
The first year we really spent a lot of time building relationships among the organizations
and partners and we have a greater understanding of what each other does now.
We can surround kids with support both in and out of school.
HYC members meet at sight teems twice a month.
Drilling down into data to address attendance, behavior, and course work challenges of individual students.
You know we have 560 kids here at Gary. And when you look at that you think it could be
really really overwhelming, but the sight teams enable you to just narrow in and focus on each student.
It just impacts youth in such a different way.
We're not siloed as partners and as schools.
We're able to really work together to fully support youth and their families.
We each have different areas of expertise but when we come together, we're able to focus on student success.
We each have the ability to put a piece of support around the student.
So when somebody is having a hard time in school, I can hear from the councilors on what's going on.
And I can give them insight on what's happening in the club.
More often than not this sharing of information gives us an opportunity to better support
the youth both at school as well as in the club.
Gonzaga's Center for Community Action and Service Learning oversees several programs
before and after class. As well as during the school day.
All are aimed at improving attendance, behavior and course completion.
I think that it allows kids to explore their passions and interests and also to get them
thinking about the next step, like past school, whatever that may be for them.
I think these clubs give us more energy to hang out, communicate with friends, have a
little bit of fun here and there.
Without these clubs, I wouldn't be able to connect with other people or learn things
about different schools.
Even just from beginning this year until now, they've grown so much I think.
Whether that be in communication or their teamwork or just finding more about themselves.
I like just hanging out with my mentor and being able to talk to him.
He can help me with like my homework and if I have a problem I can talk to him about it.
And they're actually donating their time to come us which I really appreciate.
The Spokane community gives so much to this university and to the students.
And it's a chance for them to give back in whatever small way that they possibly can.
Gonzaga's School of Education is also central to the success of the HYC.
These are pre-service teachers and this is their first hands on experience with being
in a classroom. It's a win-win-win for everybody.
They can decide whether or not they really truly like being in the classroom.
99 percent of the time, they do.
And then it's a win for out teachers because it causes them to purposefully plan.
And then it's a win for our students because they get that small group differentiated instruction.
And they can build relationships.
Communities and schools sight coordinators connect partner agencies with the schools.
They also work one on one with the students at risk of dropping out.
As a sight coordinator we provide food, clothing, and school supplies and so they can focus
more on learning.
My impact and building relationships with the roughly 100 students that I case manage
is also positively impacted their academic success.
They have somebody they can bounce their problems off of and really focus on school.
The Boys and Girls Club provides an organized, supervised, and safe environment to after
school and on weekends.
HYC has given us the chance to bring more youth into the building, give them access
to greater programs, as well as access to greater opportunities in their future whether
it be career prep, homework, as well as just unique activities.
We were talking to Ryan about having a Islander's Club for Islanders.
And then we talked to him and then he got it going for us.
So like if we didn't have him, like our club wouldn't have started.
So like, i give all the thanks to Ryan for like using his time for us to like come here.
It was teaching how what we to other people.
And having other people learn about us more and how our culture is.
In the long term, this collaboration is expected to improve on time graduation rates for students
and increase the number who enroll in post-secondary education.
Just the whole concept of a collaborative is a very powerful thing.
Public schools can not do the complete educational process for kids just by themselves.
I just love this opportunity and I think we're just right now starting to see some of the
fruits of out labors and I think the collaborative is the future of support.
It's the community taking a part in a child's education and success.
And when you see there's so many people willing to put forth that effort, and their time,
and their brain power to make this community a better place, it's just huge.