The Connecticut RISE Network is utilizing planning grant funds to develop a national service strategy to expand and enhance the organization's On-Track Coaching program to support more Connecticut students in transitioning from 8th grade to 9th grade, as successful transition between these two critical grades is a key indicator of on-track high school completion.

PLANNING GRANT APPLICATION SUMMARY:

Founded in partnership with Connecticut educators, the RISE Network's commitment to breaking multigenerational opportunity gaps has propelled us to support tens of thousands of students, predominantly from low-income communities, in achieving high school success and pursuing their high school and postsecondary goals. Through innovative and data-driven partnership models, RISE facilitates improvement networks, where educators collaborate across schools and districts to advance shared goals. RISE’s mission is to ensure all students graduate with a plan and the skills and confidence to achieve college and career success.

RISE helps schools by investing in improvement infrastructure in three key areas: Empowering Educators, Building Educator Capacity and Enhancing School Structures. An innovative strategy the RISE Network has implemented is the On-Track Coach role, specifically designed to support ninth graders at risk of falling behind. This role, crucial given Connecticut's high student-to-counselor ratios, focuses on students identified in eighth grade as high-risk based on attendance, behavior, and grades. This allows the On-Track Coach to be laser focused on helping students stay on track and experience a strong transition into high school. RISE is seeing the deep impact of this role.

As an example, at the end of the 2022-23 school year, students network wide who were supported by On-Track Coaches had a higher on-track rate than the overall network school population, even though On-Track Coach caseloads have double the percentage of students identified as high risk and vulnerable compared to the Grade 9 population overall. Based on these results, RISE seeks to expand on-track support positions in additional high schools and districts, especially given the widespread needs. However, the On-Track Coach position is currently limited to nine RISE partner schools and the current design is not scalable.