Mentoring in Green Bay to Keep Kids in School

The Boys and Girls Club of Green Bay is expanding its mentoring program for high school students who are in danger of dropping out.The Be Great: Graduate program pairs at-risk youth with volunteer adult graduation coaches who help motivate teens to stay in school.

Johanna Wicklund is Director of Program Development and Evaluation at the Boys and Girls Club of Green Bay.She says at the core of the program is the relationship between the student and the graduation coach.”This graduation coach is a real source of stability in many students lives who many not have another positive adult who they can go to when they need help or when they need to talk about school or life in general,” she says.

Wicklund says the coaches meet weekly with each student to check in on his or her school performance and help provide interventions, if needed.She says the results are exciting.

“We’ve seen some real success in report card grade improvements, in core academics such as math, reading, and language arts as well as reductions in behavioral referrals during the school day among students who have been participating in this graduation initiative,” she says.

The Be Great: Graduate program currently serves 60 students in Green Bay, but will expand to serve 100 thanks to a $154,000 grant from AT&T.The Boys and Girls Clubs in Kenosha also offers the program, and Madison will do so this fall.