Project Success-Students Undertaking Creative Control

Programs: Goal-setting workshops are held monthly, from 6th through 12th grade, in each english/language arts classroom, for each student in every school we serve. We do not use a set of criteria to select a group of students - we come to each of them in their classrooms - so no one falls through the cracks, all are included, and students benefit working on their goals as a whole, supportive community. Workshops are led by highly trained, caring project success facilitators - 80% of their time is spent in the schools - using our proven grade-specific, cumulative curriculum that aligns with the english academic curriculum and common core standards and is specifically designed to help students create, set and achieve short- and long-term goals. Goal-setting workshops: goal-setting workshops are the foundation of our programming where students develop measurably stronger social and emotional skills, community engagement, a growth mindset and a sense of future direction, all with the support of a caring adult. We do this through a variety of workshop activities - drama exercises, group games, writing explorations, guest artists, discussions, and other creative approaches the facilitator has determined would best assist in the achievement of our curriculum goals for a particular class or group of students and for individual student learning styles. Students take what they learn in their monthly in-class project success workshops into real-world applications through our theater experiences and experiential learning opportunities. Our middle school curriculum goals are to inspire and motivate students to dream about their futures, find their supportive community, learn how to set and achieve goals, define success, make sound decisions, and prepare for the transition to high school. Our high school curriculum goals are to help students further their self-understanding and passions and what they want out of high school, explore their post-secondary options, develop their skills to research, think critically and make choices, and prepare for life after graduation. By spring of their senior year, we want all students to have a personal, post-high school plan that best suits their needs, personalities, and goals, and the resilience to overcome the expected and take advantage of life opportunities. Throughout all grades, our classroom workshops are regularly customized to meet the unique needs of the classroom, a group of students, and individual learning styles, and are regularly evaluated for quality and effectiveness. Our project success facilitators also meet with students one-on-one outside of class for goal-setting and planning support. During the 2016-17 school year, project success enabled more than 12,140 middle and high school students to attend 3,500 monthly goal-setting workshops led by our nine professional facilitators in 118 classrooms in 17 minneapolis public schools. Independent evaluations by the university of minnesota center for applied research and educational improvement (carei) report that:* 91% of middle school students in project success indicated the program "helped me think about my future and 88% said the program "helped me to set goals. "* 90% of high school students said project success "helped me create a plan for after graduation. " * when asked who "assisted you in future planning," 89% of high school students rated project success ahead of friends, counselors and teachers and second only to parents or guardians. * 88% teachers report that project success helps students to be more self-aware of their strengths, work better with peers, be more motivated to succeed in school, and set goals for the future. * 90% of alumni report that project success helped them to be better problem solvers, more motivated to succeed in school, be more self-directed, evaluate progress toward goals, and create a plan for after graduation.

theater experiences: professional theater experiences are offered to inspire and challenge students, broaden their global perspectives, act as a springboard for discussion, and help students develop stronger connections to family, school and larger community. We invite students and their families to at least eight performances annually at no cost to them, thanks to our 40 twin cities theater partners who generously donate tickets. The performances enrich students' shared family and community experiences, which can lead to more positive and supportive relationships and improved academic achievement. The mutually beneficial partnership with theaters not only helps to serve our families, it promotes a stronger, more informed, more diverse theater going community. Before each school year begins, project success staff works with our theater and school partner staff to identify theatrical productions that address issues relevant to the program's participants. Project success staff then reads the suggested scripts to determine the appropriateness of the themes and language for the different grade levels of our students, constructing theater "seasons" for each school. Project success sends invitations to students' households, takes reservations, greets students and their families at the theater and provides free transportation and child-care, if needed, through a dedicated volunteer driver and child-care worker force. Project success also works with theater and school partners to coordinate class and school field trips to see theater during the school day. Project success' classroom workshop themes are tied into the plays to which the students are invited. These discussions and events enable project success staff to continue to adjust the theater experiences and classroom workshops to the needs and interests of the participants, and allow english/language arts teachers to capitalize on engaging experiences that help students connect with their academic work. Through project success, students and their families - many of whom would not otherwise have the means to experience the twin cities' vibrant arts community - attend diverse theater performances together, enriching their shared family and school community experiences and increasing opportunities for bonding interactions, which can lead to more positive family and school relationships and greater home/peer support for youth - shown to have a positive impact on student achievement. During the 2016-17 school year, project success provided the opportunity for 7,000 unique students and family members to attend over 140 evening and weekend performances with complimentary play tickets donated by 35 professional twin cities area theaters. Project success also brought more than 2,985 unique students (some of whom participated in more than one field trip) on 16 different daytime field trips to area theater performances.

experiential learning opportunities: through students' participation in their project success workshops, they develop trusting relationships with program staff, and are more likely to participate in our experiential learning activities. Our activities, such as college tours, artistic experiences (e. G. Artist residencies and project success-produced musicals), and outdoor adventures (e. G. Week-long boundary waters canoe trips and local outdoor experiences), are designed to deepen our trusting relationships with students and offer them opportunities to: apply what they have learned in the classroom through real-world experiences, refine and achieve their future goals, build relationships, broaden their global perspectives, and develop confidence in creative thinking, decision making and resourcefulness, while developing the skills to plan their futures. The following are examples of experiential learning activities that we plan, coordinate and implement:college tours:since many of our students are college bound, planning for the future means researching and selecting a college or university that is a good fit for at least the next two to four years of their lives. Project success organizes and hosts state and national college tours to an average of 40 college/university campuses annually. These are critical opportunities that both inspire and educate young people about their possibilities and opportunities. Using our curriculum designed for critical thinking, project success staff conducts workshops on tour days using our "conscious choice" curriculum, designed to help students make the most of their campus visit, including preparing thoughtful questions for admissions staff. Following campus visits, they help students take the next steps in the application process through one-on-one post-secondary planning support. In-state tours are offered at no charge. Project success charges a participation fee for out-of-state tours to help cover the travel costs, but we do not turn away any student based on the ability to pay and offer full/partial scholarships to assist with fee payment. During the 2016 -17 school year, project success facilitated 419 students' college selection process by bringing them on 39 tours of colleges, institutes, universities in minnesota, illinois, iowa, north dakota and wisconsin. Once again, this year, project success collaborated with minneapolis public schools (mps) to bring 39 english learner students (nominated by their principals) from each mps high school to tour boston and harvard universities. Analysis of project success participation data by the minneapolis public schools department of research, evaluation and assessment shows that:- 67% of all students who attend project success college tours are more likely to graduate on time than students who do not participate. - high school students who participate in at least one project success college tour show an increase of 2% in graduation rates across all populations. - african-american and latino students who participate in a college tour show a 5% average increase in grade point average (gpa), or 21% after 4 years, greater than those that did not participate. Annual theatrical performances:middle school is a critical time for students to build their confidence and belief in their ability to succeed, and bolster their self-esteem. Schools are experiencing dwindling resources allocated for providing quality arts programming for students, which has shown to improve student confidence and achievement. Project success offers students opportunities to participate in an annual hands-on artistic enrichment experience, most often a theatrical performance, which helps students build the perseverance, confidence and skills needed to put on a high-quality production, experience success, and develop peer and community support. Project success coordinates the entire production. Students work in front of and behind the scenes, interacting directly with professional artists and quality equipment. They rehearse every day after school for eight weeks, culminating in school and public performances for hundreds of audience members. Project success staff incorporate our curriculum goals into each rehearsal to help students understand the relevance of the activities to their daily lives. The schools enthusiastically provide the space for rehearsal and performance, and project success covers all other expenses associated with the production. Putting on a very professional and successful theater performance contributes to young people's skills and self-esteem, and gives them opportunities for real-world application of skills learned in the classroom. During the 2016 -17 school year, project success produced full-scale musical performances in three different middle schools starring more than 200 students, including "high school musical" at sanford middle school, "annie" at marcy open school, and "you're a good man, charlie brown" at anwatin middle school. Analysis of project success participation data by the minneapolis public schools department of research, evaluation and assessment shows that:- middle school students who participate in a project success-produced musical (8 weeks of daily rehearsals after school, culminating in performances for their peers and the community) show a 6% average increase in gpa (20% after 3 years). - african american and latino male students that do both the musical and 4 college visits have up to a 26% increase in gpa over four years greater than those who did not participate. Outdoor adventures: in the summer, project success keeps inspiring students by offering a very special annual canoe trip to the boundary waters canoe area wilderness (bwca) in northern minnesota. Since 1999, project success has taken middle school students on this summer canoe adventure for seven full days. During the week, campers learn to work together to paddle and portage canoes, set up and break down camp, cook their own food, clean up without making an impact on the natural environment, and spend every evening reflecting as a group on the activities of the day and the plan for the next day. This activity takes everything we teach during our in-class project success workshops and helps students apply that knowledge in a real-world experience. They develop positive behaviors and skills, such as goal-setting, leadership, teamwork, and communication skills building grit, confidence and respect for the awesome beauty of the wilderness and a simple way of life. In june 2017, project success brought 155 students from eight schools on one of three week-long adventures in the boundary waters canoe area wilderness. During the 2016-17 school year, project success expanded its outdoor experiential learning opportunities to include the urban outdoors, aimed to introduce our students to the nature in their backyards. More than 300 students and their families in mps participated during the school year.

during the 2016-17 school year, project success continued to expand programming and attain various accomplishments as follows:- project success began serving all students attending justice page middle school (formerly known as ramsey middle school) at the beginning of the 2016-17 school year. - project success collaborated with minneapolis public schools (mps) to bring 39 english learner students to tour boston and harvard universities. Of the experience, one participant said, ""this trip with project success gave college tours an entirely different meaning. I learned more than just what this college was like, i learned about how i should be managing my time and what i should be doing and when i should be doing it during my senior year of high school. I learned about myself, and i learned more about what i want in a school. "- project success partnered with mps and the guthrie theater to create shared experiences for 2,000 9th graders from mps by bringing them to shakespeare's "king lear" at the guthrie. Prior to the field trips, project success offered the unique opportunity to bring 10 students (nominated by their principals) to serve as ambassadors and peer educators on a trip to london, england to preview "king lear", experience an acting class on the globe theatre stage, and to engage in conversations around the themes of the play. One participant said, "project success is a program that gives you resources to pursue not only a college education, but also a lifetime education. " another student wrote, "project success is an organization filled with people who work to help kids realize their worth and what they can contribute to society. "- project success partnered with mps to broaden students' global perspectives by bringing nine students to france. Students explored france's history, language and culture in paris and normandy. One of the students wrote, "this trip helped me realize that there really is no barrier big enough to stop you from your dreams. " founded in 1994, serving 200 students at north high school in minneapolis, project success has grown to serve more than 13,000 students 19 mps middle and high schools beginning in the upcoming 2017-18 school year. Over our 23-year history, we have served more than 100,000 students in the two districts.