West Broad Street YMCA Summer 2013 Program Participants in the West Broad Street YMCAs 2013 summer

program were assessed along a number of dimensions using a literacy test and a survey developed in conjunction with a local university. Highlights from the findings are discussed here. Average scores improved in all literacy subtests. Participants demonstrated statistically-significant improvements in five areas; High-Frequency Words, Word Recognition, Spelling, Vocabulary and Comprehension (p<.05). There is a less than five percent likelihood that the improvements seen in these areas are due to chance. After attending WBSY programs, more participants met or exceeded grade-level standards in all subtests, excluding Phonemic Awareness (which does not have a grade-level score). The improvement observed in Vocabulary was statistically-significant (p < .05) and is shown, right.

The median gain for all literacy subtests is 2.88 months (with Word Recognition at 5.3 months). When compared to children from similar backgrounds where the average summer learning loss is 2 months, children in this program not only stopped the summer slide in literacy, but also gained ground from where they ended the school year. Most (70%) participants report liking the WBSY very much. Only four percent of participants report not liking the WBSY. Those participants who reported not liking the WBSY were all between the ages of eight and ten years.

The majority of participants report learning new things at the WBSY (88%) and making friends at the WBSY (91%). Most participants report liking the teachers at the WBSY (63% like all of the teachers and 35% like some of them). Ninety-three percent of participants report liking the activities offered at the WBSY.

Ninety-two percent of participants report feeling safe at the WBSY. Contrast this response with a survey conducted by the local school district in 2012, in which 78% of students report feeling safe at school (http://www.boarddocs.com/ga/sccs/Board.nsf/Public).
0%

"Do You Feel Safe at this Y?"

8%

Yes 92% No

Eighty-eight percent of respondents report getting mostly As and Bs in school. Fifty-four percent of participants say they like school and an additional 34% report liking it at least sometimes. Eightypercent of participants report they enjoy reading. Ninety-six percent of participants plan to complete high school and 71% plan to attend a four-year college, with an additional 8% planning to attend a two-year college. Some evidence suggested the more often young people visit the WBSY, the more likely they are to plan on attending college. Seventy-nine percent of participants report they do not have friends who drink alcohol nor do they have friends who use drugs. Furthermore, participants who report making friends at the WBSY are less likely to report having friends who use alcohol and drugs. Ninety-six percent of participants, and 100% of female participants, report appropriate resistance skills if encouraged by a friend to use alcohol or drugs (walk away, tell an adult, etc.). There was also some evidence suggesting a potential relationship between WBSY attendance and inschool suspensions. Those participants reporting having been sent to in-school suspension five or more times over the last year also reported visiting the WBSY less often than all other groups.