ON-TRACK COACHING EVALUATION REPORT
By: Melanie Gonzalez, Chris Lewine, and Karleka Norman | May 2025
ABOUT THE RISE NETWORK
The RISE Network’s mission is to ensure all RISE high school students graduate with a plan and the skills and confidence to achieve college and career success.
Founded in 2015, RISE partners with public high schools to lead statewide networks where school communities work together to use data to learn and improve. Through its core and most comprehensive network, RISE partners with nine high schools and eight public school districts, serving over 13,000 students; the majority of RISE students identify as Black, Latine, and/or low-income. RISE high schools work together to ensure all students experience success as they transition to, through, and beyond high school by using data to pinpoint needs, form hypotheses, and pursue ideas to advance student achievement.
RISE high schools have achieved double-digit gains improving Grade 9 on-track achievement, four-year-high school graduation rates, and student identification of postsecondary plans, while also decreasing subgroup gaps across all indicators. In 2021, the RISE Network was honored to receive the Carnegie Foundation’s annual Spotlight on Quality in Continuous Improvement recognition. Increasingly, RISE is pursuing opportunities to scale its impact through consulting partnerships with public school districts, state agencies, and non-profit organizations.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Importance of Grade 9
On-Track Achievement
Earning a high school diploma is a critical milestone for individuals, impacting both economic and health outcomes. Unfortunately, this is a critical milestone that many Connecticut youth are not successfully achieving. A 2023 report from Dalio Education and the Boston Consulting Group found that one in five young people in Connecticut are either in danger of dropping out of school or have already dropped out and are unemployed.1 Research from the University of Chicago shows that Grade 9 on-track achievement (i.e., whether a student earns enough credits to promote to Grade 10 after their first year of high school) is the best predictor of whether a student will graduate from high school within four years.2
On-Track Coach Strategy
Report Overview
Recognizing the central importance of Grade 9 on-track achievement, the RISE Network first piloted the on-track coach strategy during the 2016-17 academic year as a way to support on-track success among incoming Grade 9 students who demonstrated attendance, academic, and/or behavioral risk factors in Grade 8. On-Track Coaches (OTCs) are youth development professionals who serve as champions and advocates for a targeted caseload of 60 students. They provide one-onone and group coaching sessions to students to help them gain and reinforce the knowledge, skills, mindsets, and behaviors required to successfully navigate the middle-to-high school transition and achieve Grade 9 on-track status. Additionally, OTCs work with educators and families to support student success through a variety of activities that facilitate effective communication and collaboration. By coordinating communication and interventions and monitoring students’ progress, OTCs serve as liaisons with students, school staff, and families.
This report highlights findings from an internal evaluation conducted at RISE, investigating the impact of the OTC strategy. To answer our first evaluation question — How does the on-track coaching strategy impact students’ on-track achievement? — we analyzed end-of-year data of first-time Grade 9 students from our Core Network schools with OTC programs to compare differences in needs profiles, Grade 8 and Grade 9 attendance and academic performance, and end-of-year ontrack rates between students on and off of an OTC caseload.3 To answer our second evaluation question — How do OTCs provide support for their students? — we used focus group and survey data collected from OTCs, students, and school administrators, and conducted a thematic analysis to understand what were the most beneficial components of the OTC strategy.
1. Boston Consulting Group Getting Young People Back on Track: A Study of Connecticut’s At-Risk and Disconnected Young People. Dalio Education, 2023. https://www.dalioeducation.org/report/
2. Allensworth, Elaine, and John Easton The On-Track Indicator as a Predictor of High School Graduation. University of Chicago, 2005. https://consortium.uchicago.edu/sites/default/files/2023-06/The%20On-Track%20Indicator-Jun2005-Consortium.pdf
KEY FINDINGS
EVALUATION QUESTION 1:
HOW DOES THE ON-TRACK COACHING STRATEGY IMPACT STUDENTS’ ON-TRACK ACHIEVEMENT?
Which students do the OTCs serve?
One third of incoming Grade 9 students demonstrated high needs (i.e. students with low grades and/or low attendance in eighth grade).
OTCs reach 60 percent of the highest-need, first-time Grade 9 students in these schools.
Students on an OTC caseload are three times as likely to demonstrate high needs, compared to students not on an OTC caseload.
How do OTC students benefit?
Students supported by an OTC end the year just as on-track as their peers who are not on a caseload.
OTCs narrow the gap between students on a caseload and students off a caseload with college-ready grade point averages (GPAs) by 12 percentage points.
OTCs narrow the gap between students on a caseload and students off a caseload who are not chronically absent by 11 percentage points.
EVALUATION QUESTION 2: HOW DO ON-TRACK COACHES (OTCS) PROVIDE SUPPORT FOR THEIR STUDENTS?
OTCs serve as key collaborators with multiple stakeholders to support the on-track success of students on their caseload.
Students: OTCs’ consistent check-ins with students allow them to build trusting relationships that students can turn to for support through challenges they experience during their transition to high school.
Educators and Administrators: OTCs serve as vital collaborators to support educators and administrators in gaining a deeper understanding of how students are doing. Collaborative practices built into high school systems and structures, such as grade-level improvement team meetings, classroom push-ins,and formal and informal check-ins help to facilitate the effectiveness of this collaboration.
Caregivers: OTCs serve as a critical bridge linking school staff and caregivers, sharing information, and working to build supportive relationships.
OTCs support students by building knowledge, skills, and mindsets in three areas.
Accountability and Motivation: OTCs hold their students accountable for their on-track success at regular check-ins. They provide motivation to their students to get and stay on-track through their encouragement and incentives.
Academic and School Support: OTCs provide space and opportunity to help students complete classwork, prepare for exams, and gain the study and time management skills they need to build a successful high school career. They also support students in addressing academic or school challenges.
Social and Emotional Support: OTCs serve as a caring and safe adult who students can talk to about sensitive topics impacting their social and emotional health. OTCs support students in developing skills that help students process and regulate their emotions in productive ways.
IMPLICATIONS & RECOMMENDATIONS
The findings from this report show that the OTC strategy successfully reaches students entering Grade 9 with the highest needs, based on Grade 8 attendance and academic performance. Despite the higher-need profiles of students on OTC caseloads, they have ended the year on-track at rates equivalent to their off-caseload peers with much lower needs profiles. Therefore, OTCs are effectively helping the students with the highest needs promote to Grade 10 at the same rate as their peers. Furthermore, our findings imply that OTCs are helping students successfully adjust to the challenging transition from Grade 8 to Grade 9, as evidenced through the decreases in the gaps of the percentages of students with GPAs of 3.0 or greater and students with average daily attendances (ADAs) greater than 90 percent from Grade 8 to Grade 9.
OTCs serve as key figures within RISE’s Core Network schools to build the supportive system that incoming Grade 9 students with attendance, academic, and behavioral risk factors need to succeed. They not only coach students individually to build their individual capacities, but also serve as key collaborators with other adults in their students’ lives to reduce barriers and set up supports to promote student success.
While the on-track coaching strategy has supported positive outcomes of Grade 9 students, there is still work that needs to be done to address the problem of youth disconnecting, disengaging, and ultimately dropping out of high school. The following section outlines key recommendations based on the key findings of this report.
The on-track coaching strategy has helped support students with the challenging transition from middle school to high school. As one administrator shared, “My second year when we brought in the on-track counselors, we had historically high, high, high failure rates with 9th graders in social studies and in world language… that is a phenomenon that we no longer face… some of our most vulnerable students have the supports that they need, and their families do as well, to successfully navigate the transition to high school… We have counselors in the 9th grade to be able to catch when those declines in performance and attendance start and to intervene quickly.”
District Leaders and Policymakers
Implications
Students benefit when they have access to support staff who can help them navigate the transition from middle school to high school.
Strong data management systems are essential to allow high schools to proactively identify incoming students with higher needs and to monitor their progress over the year.
Recommendations
• Invest in adequate support staffing to enable lower student-to-adult caseload ratios.
• Facilitate and prioritize collaboration between middle school and high school staff, enabling proactive supports for incoming students.
• Direct staffing time and resources towards the students who have the greatest need.
• Invest in data tools that provide educators real-time visibility around students’ on-track statuses and progress through high school.
• Enable and initiate secure data-sharing and other communication between high schools and their feeder middle schools.
• Facilitate and enable data sharing for students who move between district systems.
Educators, Administrators, and Teams
Implications
Students with high needs profiles from middle school benefit from specialized support in Grade 9.
OTCs are able to have a deeper understanding of the key factors influencing a students performance, enabling them to serve as effective collaborators with other school staff and caregivers.
Recommendations
• Explicitly educate students on high school expectations and the impact of their high school performance on postsecondary opportunities.
• Provide supports that equip students with the skills and practices to achieve on-track success.
• Provide opportunities for students to work with an adult to address challenges they are facing in school.
• Invest in OTCs or a similar structure that designates staff to serve a caseload of students with the highest needs.
• Implement school structures that facilitate communication and collaboration between school staff supporting student success, such as consistent grade-level data team meetings.
• Build a Grade 9 on-track culture that prioritizes on-track success and educates school stakeholders around the critical importance of Grade 9.
RISE Network and Partners
Implications
While end-of-year on-track rates of students on and off a caseload are comparable, a gap exists in the percentage of these student groups with college-ready GPAs (i.e., > 3.0) and ADAs > 90%.
The on-track coaching strategy is supporting the on-track success of students with high need profiles from middle school.
Recommendations
• Continue to improve the use of the RISE Data Hub to monitor not just on-track status, but also, GPA and attendance.
• Deliver interventions to support students with lower GPAs and/or chronic absenteeism, even if they are passing enough classes to be considered on-track.
• Conduct evaluations that assess the differences in on-time graduation outcomes of students who end Grade 9 on-track based on differences in GPA and attendance bands.
• Share findings from this evaluation with diverse stakeholders and decision-makers.
• Look for opportunities to make the OTC program more sustainable, financially and otherwise, for existing and new partner schools.
• Scale this work to other schools addressing high Grade 9 retention rates.
If you are interested in learning more about the on-track coaching strategy and how it can support Grade 9 students at your school: CONTACT: Karleka Norman, Deputy Director, Freshman Success | knorman@ctrise.org
Learn more and sign up for an opportunity to get involved ctrise.org/get-involved
INTRODUCTION
Importance of Grade 9 and High School Graduation
Earning a high school diploma is a critical milestone for individuals, impacting their economic and health outcomes. A literature review conducted by the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion found that not completing high school is linked to limited employment prospects, low wages, and poverty. Furthermore, they found that students who do not complete high school may experience poor health outcomes and premature death.1
A 2023 report from Dalio Education and the Boston Consulting Group found that one in five young people in Connecticut are either in danger of dropping out of school or have already dropped out and are unemployed.2 Given the impact of high school graduation on the long-term life outcomes and well-being of individuals, it is important to pursue strategies to reduce the instances of high school drop-out rates to position students well for high school and postsecondary success.
The first year of high school is a critically important time for students. Research shows that Grade 9 on-track achievement (i.e., whether a student earns enough credits to be promoted to Grade 10 within their first year of high school) is the best predictor of whether a student will
graduate from high school within four years -- more so than test scores, family income, or race/ethnicity.3
The middle-to-high school transition can be scary, challenging, and overwhelming for students. Rising high school students transition to a new school building with new teachers and peers, while also navigating adolescence and increased autonomy and responsibility. Research shows that when students develop a strong relationship with at least one caring adult in their school, their educational outcomes improve.4 Establishing a trusting and supportive relationship is especially imperative for students who enter high school exhibiting risk factors that may lead to disengagement or disconnection from school.5
School counselors play a major role in supporting students’ social and academic development; however, the student-to-counselor ratio often far exceeds the 250:1 ratio recommended by the American School Counselor Association. In Connecticut, the student-to-counselor ratio from the 2022-23 academic year was 332:1, and counselors often have to prioritize scheduling, postsecondary planning, and countless other functions.6 Research has shown a strong correlation between students being at-risk
(i.e., having low credit attainment, behavioral incidents, and/or high rates of absenteeism) and not graduating from high school. A Connecticut study found that 75 percent of students who did not graduate from high school were at-risk, whereas 18 percent of students who graduated from high school were at-risk.7 This over representation of at-risk students in the pool of students not graduating from high school suggests the need to develop and implement strategies aimed at supporting them to achieve graduation.
Authors Note:
Throughout this report, we use terms such as “at risk” because students who are off-track in Grade 9 are far less likely to graduate from high school on time; the risks and consequences are significant. The term is more so a reflection of a student’s experiences and their surrounding conditions; it is no way a commentary about the student’s potential. We know student statuses are not fixed and are a direct reflection of the support systems (or lack thereof) that either promote and prevent success.
University of Chicago Risk and Opportunity Framework
One of the ways the RISE Network supports schools in identifying students who may be at-risk of not graduating on time is by assigning students a Grade 8 Risk and Opportunity (R&O) status.8 This framework, developed by the University of Chicago, places students within one of four categories based on their eighth grade attendance and GPA data (See Figure 1). RISE also provides eighth grade behavior data in their R&O dataset.
The R&O Framework (See Figure 2) provides a glimpse into the incoming Grade 9 cohort’s successes and challenges in 8th grade. This information is the starting place for students entering into high school. Using these statuses, high school educators and counselors are able to be proactive about identifying students who may be in need of personalized support and delivering interventions to ensure their success as they transition into high school.
Figure 1: Criteria used to calculate an incoming Grade 9 student’s R&O Status
Figure 2: Risk and Opportunity Framework
History of the OTC Strategy
In 2016, a subset of RISE’s Core Network schools decided to work together to develop a new strategy to respond to the high Grade 9 retention rates schools were seeing. At the time, one in three Core Network Grade 9 students were not promoted to Grade 10 within one year. Educators in partner schools hypothesized that large student-to-counselor ratios did not allow for the specialized support that students with Grade 8 risk factors needed to be successful in Grade 9.
Starting in the 2016-17 academic year, the role of the On-Track Coach (OTC) was developed as a way to better serve incoming Grade 9 students who demonstrated attendance, academic, and/or behavioral risk factors in Grade 8. Since then, the strategy has expanded to all nine of RISE’s Core Network schools.
In 2022, after having experienced significant successes, RISE undertook a more formal evaluation of the OTC strategy in order to consolidate evidence and share learnings with the field.
Elements of the OTC Strategy
On-Track Coaches (OTCs) are youth development professionals who serve as champions and advocates for a targeted caseload of Grade 9 students. As fulltime members of the high school staff, OTCs play an integral role in supporting students who demonstrated attendance, academic, social, and/or behavioral risk factors in middle school. OTCs function as coaches for students who may otherwise experience difficulty or become off-track by collaborating with students, educators, administrators, and families to ensure students succeed.
The on-track coaching strategy was developed to provide more specialized case management support to a subset of first-time Grade 9 students at risk of not being promoted to Grade 10 within one year based on Grade 8 performance. On-Track Coaches provide direct student support and collaborate with educators to support the on-track achievement of students on their caseload, while also contributing to a school-wide on-track culture.
OTCs have a maximum caseload of 60 students identified through Grade 8 data, and the reduced caseload allows them to provide deep and sustained support. Using data, they develop personalized achievement plans for their students. By coordinating communication and interventions and monitoring students’ progress, OTCs serve as liaisons with students, school staff, and families.
They meet with students one-on-one and in group counseling and coaching sessions to help them gain and reinforce the knowledge, skills, mindsets, and behaviors required to successfully promote to Grade 10, and subsequently, graduate from high school on-time. OTCs engage in weekly improvement team meetings with their Grade 9 colleagues, and push into classrooms to better understand how students are adjusting to high school and provide classroom support as needed*. OTCs establish themselves as a resource and point of contact for families, describing their role and explaining the importance of on-track promotion. OTCs may host events and workshops at the school to share strategies and resources with families. OTCs also use their creativity to pilot strategies to promote student engagement and academic success, such as parent events, after-school tutoring, and student clubs and extracurriculars.
OTCs work with their students in gaining the following knowledge, skills, mindsets, and behaviors to support on-track achievement:
KNOWLEDGE: School academic and behavioral policies, on-track definitions, on-track requirements, and high school expectations
SKILLS: Note-taking, study strategies, organization, goal setting, communication (peer-to-peer, student-to-educator), and emotional regulation techniques
MINDSETS: Belief in ability to succeed in school, accomplish goals, and overcome obstacles
BEHAVIORS: Attendance, on-time submission of assignments, and utilization of emotional regulation strategies
* Improvement teams engage a diverse group of educators in regular, data-driven collaboration to support a specific group of students (e.g., grade-level teams). Educators share their unique perspectives and experiences working with a common set of students in an effort to advance shared student outcome goals. For more information, see our On-Track Data Teams Strategy Guide
QUESTIONS & METHODOLOGY
As the RISE Network has been working to expand its efforts to promote Grade 9 on-track success, we wanted to increase our understanding of the on-track coaching strategy. To do so, we collected data to answer the following evaluation questions:
EVALUATION QUESTION 1:
How does the on-track coaching strategy impact students’ on-track achievement?
The RISE Network assessed differences in end-of-year outcomes between first-time Grade 9 students on and off of a caseload to better understand how the OTC strategy was impacting students. To accomplish this goal, we used end-of-year data from the 2022-23 and 2023-24 cohorts of first-time Grade 9 students from eight of our nine Core Network schools to:
1. Calculate the percentage of students entering Grade 9 with risk factors during middle school.
2. Calculate the reach of the OTC strategy on all first-time Grade 9 students and on all first-time Grade 9 students with an R&O status of “high risk” or “vulnerable.”
3. Calculate the proportion of students with an R&O status of “high risk” or “vulnerable” on a caseload versus off of a caseload.
4. Calculate the average grade point average (GPA) and average daily attendance (ADA) among students on and off of a caseload.
5. Compare end-of-year on-track rates of students on and off of a caseload.
6. Calculate the differences in Grade 8 versus Grade 9 performance between on caseload and off caseload students.*
a. Calculate the percentage of students on a caseload versus off a caseload who ended Grade 8 with a GPA of 3.0 or greater in Grade 8 versus Grade 9.
b. Calculate the percentage of students on a caseload versus off a caseload who ended Grade 8 with an ADA greater than 90% in Grade 8 versus Grade 9.
EVALUATION QUESTION 2:
How does the on-track coaching strategy impact students’ on-track achievement?
In addition to wanting to assess the impact of the OTC strategy on student outcomes, RISE sought to better understand the components that key stakeholders found to be most effective in supporting student on-track success. To accomplish this goal, we gathered data from OTCs, students, and administrators using the methods outlined in Figure 3 **
OTC DATA COLLECTION
Administered survey to OTCs at all nine Core Network schools and conducted a thematic analysis of 17 open-ended responses to the question: “What is the most rewarding part of your work as an OTC?”
STUDENT DATA COLLECTION
Administered survey to students on OTC caseloads at three Core Network schools and conducted a thematic analysis of 201 open-ended responses to the question: “What did you find most helpful about working with your OTC?”
Conducted three focus groups via Zoom with students representing three Core Network schools and conducted a thematic analysis of focus group question responses collected from eight representative caseload students.
ADMINISTRATOR DATA COLLECTION
Conducted one focus group via Zoom with administrators representing five Core Network schools and conducted a thematic analysis of focus group question responses collected from five representative school administrators.
* One limitation of our study is that 1,470 of the 5,719 students included in the analysis of this data were missing either Grade 8 or Grade 9 GPA or ADA data, so they were excluded from this analysis. Typically students have missing eighth grade data because they transferred into high school from a different middle school district.
** One limitation of our study was that we were not able to collect data from guardians or educators to gain insights about their perspectives about the on-track coaching strategy.
Figure 3: Stakeholder Data Collection Methods
KEY FINDINGS
EVALUATION QUESTION 1:
How does the on-track coaching strategy impact students’ on-track achievement?
Over a third of the incoming first-time Grade 9 students entered high school with high needs for support.
During the 2022-23 and 2023-24 academic years, RISE Core Network schools* ended the year with a total of 5,719 first-time Grade 9 students enrolled.** Of those students, 36 percent (n=2039) had an R&O status of “high risk” or “vulnerable,” 39 percent (n=2217) had an R&O status of “high opportunity” or “opportunity,” and 26 percent (n=1463) had an unknown R&O status (See Figure 4). This shows that a large percentage of the students enter Core Network schools with high needs for support based on eighth grade performance.
Incoming R&O Statuses of first-time Grade 9 students
R&O Status of “High Opportunity” or “Opportunity” (n=2217)
No Grade 8 Data (n=1463)
R&O Status of “High Risk” or “Vulnerable” (n=2039)
Figure 4: Over a third of first-time Grade 9 students had an R&O status of “high risk” or “vulnerable”
*The analysis includes data for eight of nine Core Network schools with available longitudinal data during the time of analysis.
** In 22-23, 2,115 first time Grade 9 students ended the year enrolled in our schools and in 23-24, 2,141 first time Grade 9 students ended the year enrolled in our schools. Since trends were similar in both years, we are combining the data from both years for the quantitative analysis conducted in this report.
OTCs reach 60 percent of ninth grade students with the greatest need.
Of the 2,039 students who entered RISE Core Network schools in the 2022-23 and 2023-24 academic years with an R&O status of “high risk” or “vulnerable,” 61 percent (n=1233) were on an OTC caseload (See Figure 5).
This shows that the OTC strategy successfully reached the majority of students entering into high school with known attendance and academic risk factors based on their performance in middle school.
OTC students struggled with 8th grade attendance and grades at almost three times the rate of their peers.
When comparing the composition of students on and off of a caseload by R&O status, a much greater proportion of students on a caseload had an R&O status of “high risk” or “vulnerable” compared to students off of a caseload. Of the 1,710 students on a caseload, 72 percent (n=1233) have an R&O status of “high risk” or “vulnerable,” whereas only 20 percent (n=806) of the 4,009 students off of a caseload have an R&O status of “high risk” or “vulnerable” (See Figure 6).
To illustrate what these differences in R&O status mean, we can examine differences in Grade 8 ADA and GPA, measures used to calculate a student’s R&O status. Of the 4,355 incoming Grade 9 students with eighth grade ADA data, students on a caseload had an average ADA of 88 percent compared to students off of a caseload, who had an ADA of 91 percent. On average, students on the caseload missed nine more days out of a 180day school year compared to their off-caseload peers in 8th grade. Furthermore, of the 4,258 incoming Grade 9 students with eighth grade GPA data, students on the caseload ended eighth grade with a 2.6 GPA or C+ average compared to their off caseload peers who ended with a 3.3 GPA or B+ average.
OTC Reach of students with and R/O Status of “High Risk” or “Vulnerable”
(n= 806)
Proportion of students with an R&O Status of “High Risk” or “Vulnerable”
On average students on a caseload missed 9 days more in eighth grade compared to their off caseload peers.
Average 8th Grade GPA
Figure 5: The majority of students with an R&O status of “high risk” or “vulnerable” were served by an OTC
On Caseload Off Caseload
Figure 6: A much greater proportion of students on a caseload have an R&O status of “high risk” or “vulnerable” compared to students off of a caseload
OTC students end the year just as on-track as their peers who are not on a caseload.
Of the 1,710 students served by the OTC strategy, 85 percent (n=1449) of them ended the year on-track. This rate is equivalent to the on-track rate of students off of a caseload, such that 85 percent (n=3396) of the 4,009 total off caseload students ended the year on-track (See Figure 7).
A 2014 research report from the University of Chicago reported that eighth grade core GPA is the best predictor of being on-track at the end of ninth grade and of passing particular subjects.9 Despite the gaps in average eighthgrade GPA, eighth-grade attendance rates, and R&O status compositions between students on and off a caseload, OTCs were able to erase this gap and support students to pass ninth grade at the same rate as their peers. In other words, OTCs were able to break the predictive power of eighth-grade performance and enable ninth-graders to succeed regardless of their middle school experience.
Narrowing the gap in grades
On-Track Rates at the End of the Year
Grade 8 difference of 50 percentage points Grade 9 difference of 39 percentage points On Caseload Off Caseload
Figure 8: The gap between caseload and off-caseload students with college-ready GPAs (≥ 3.0) narrows by 11 percentage points from Grade 8 to Grade 9
OTCs narrow the gap in grades and absenteeism.
4,249 of the 5,719 students enrolled in Core Network schools had both eighth grade and ninth grade ADA and GPA data available in districts’ longitudinal data sets. Of those students, 1,459 were on a caseload and 2,790 were not on a caseload.
There was a decline in the percentage of both on-caseload and off-caseload students that had a GPA of 3.0 or greater at the end of eighth grade versus at the end of ninth grade, with a greater decline amongst off-caseload students. Caseload students experienced a 9 percentage point difference from 27 percent in Grade 8 to 18 percent in Grade 9, and off-caseload students experienced a 20 percentage point difference from 77 percent in Grade 8 to 57 percent in Grade 9. While GPAs declined for both groups, the gap between caseload and off-caseload students shrank by 11 percentage points from 50 percentage point difference in eighth grade GPA to a 39 percentage point difference in ninth grade (See Figure 8).
Figure 7: Students on and off of an OTC caseload ended the year with equivalent on-track rates
Caseload Off Caseload
There was an increase in the percentage of both on-caseload and off-caseload students that had an ADA greater than 90 percent (i.e., not chronically absent) at the end of eighth grade versus at the end of ninth grade, with a greater increase amongst on caseload students. Caseload students experienced a 12 percentage point difference from 51 percent in Grade 8 to 63 percent in Grade 9 and off-caseload students experienced a two percentage point difference from 82 percent in Grade 8 to 84 percent in Grade 9. While it is true that at the end of both eighth and ninth grade there was a lower percentage of students with an ADA greater than 90 percent among caseload students, the gap between caseload and off caseload students shrank by 10 percentage points from a 31 percentage point difference in eighth grade GPA to a 21 percentage point difference in ninth grade (See Figure 9).
Narrowing the gap in attendance
Grade 9 difference of 21 percentage points
Figure 9: The gap between caseload and off-caseload students with ADAs over 90 percent narrows by 11 percentage points from Grade 8 to Grade 9
On Caseload Off Caseload
EVALUATION QUESTION 2: How do OTCs provide support for their students?
OTCs serve as key collaborators with students, educators, administrators, and caregivers to support the on-track success of students on their caseload.
OTCs are effective coaches and advocates for students on their caseload because of the strong collaborative relationships they build. As one administrator noted, “[OTCs are] collaborators. They collaborate with administrators, they collaborate with the teacher, they collaborate with the parent, the student… to meet the need.” This intentional relationship-building allows OTCs to facilitate effective support for students when issues arise. They become a centralized point of contact who various stakeholders can leverage to respond to the needs of students on their caseload.
OTCs serve as key collaborators with multiple stakeholders to support the on-track success of students on their caseload.
STUDENTS:
OTCs’ consistent check-ins with students allow them to build trusting relationships that students can turn to for support through challenges they experience during their transition to high school.
EDUCATORS AND ADMINISTRATORS:
OTCs serve as vital collaborators to support educators and administrators in gaining a deeper understanding of how students are doing. Collaborative practices built into high school systems and structures, such as grade-level improvement team meetings, classroom push-ins, and formal and informal check-ins help to facilitate the effectiveness of this collaboration.
CAREGIVERS:
OTCs serve as a critical bridge linking school staff and caregivers, sharing information, and working to build supportive relationships.
RELATIONSHIP WITH STUDENTS
One of the greatest strengths of the OTCs lies in their ability to meet frequently with their caseload students, build strong and trusting relationships, and quickly intervene if issues arise throughout the year.
OTCs typically check in with students on their caseload at least once every two weeks to review how the students are doing in their classes and talk about challenges and/or successes they may be experiencing. These frequent and consistent interactions allow OTCs to develop a deep understanding of how their students are doing academically and personally so that they can be responsive to their needs. As one administrator noted, “[OTCs are] the ones that the kids who are really struggling in the moment are going to seek out - they become those trusted adults.”
OTC caseload students validated that their OTCs were key trusted adults in their school whom they would go to when challenges occurred. One student survey respondent noted, “I know whenever I need something [my OTC is] there to help me and make sure I’m on-track and I got trust with them.” Some said that their relationship was so close that their OTCs felt like a mentor or a family member, such as an “older brother” or a “mother figure”, whom they could lean on and receive advice and support from. As one student survey respondent noted, the most helpful part of working with her OTC was “growing a connection [with] someone I’m comfortable with and someone I can go to for my school issues.”
Building relationships was named as one of the most rewarding parts of the job by almost every OTC. OTCs noted how it is rewarding to “[have] the opportunity to connect with [their] students”, “[see] their [students’] growth over the course of a school year”, “build positive relationships that last to graduation and for some beyond”, and “[celebrate] with the students.”
RELATIONSHIP WITH EDUCATORS & ADMINISTRATORS
OTCs, in partnership with improvement teams and administrators, lead school efforts in building an on-track culture to support their caseload students and deliver interventions to students who are not on-track to promote to Grade 10.
OTCs serve as vital members of on-track improvement teams, teams composed of various educators, led by the ninth-grade administrator, that meet on a regular basis, review Grade 9 on-track data, and collaboratively develop interventions as needed to support the on-track success of their students. As one administrator noted when describing his OTCs, “They step up and they lead. They lead those teams, they lead those efforts. They have the respect of their team teachers.”
As leaders in this work, OTCs keep a watchful eye on student data, using tools such as the RISE Data Hub* to monitor students’ on-track statuses to flag the need to increase support to students. As one administrator notes, “The OTCs in our building … do a really nice job with building capacity of all the teachers of the student, whether it has to do with data literacy, using the [Data Hub], really keeping a close eye on their students but collaborating with those teachers so that they better understand what it is that makes that student vulnerable and how to keep track of that so that we’re all working together to keep that student on-track.”
While OTCs have a formal space to collaborate with educators during improvement team meetings, there is also a lot of informal communication that takes place between OTCs and educators. As one administrator describes, “My OTCs wind up being the conduit between the team and the off-team teachers. So they’re the ones who might advocate for a student or they might ask about makeup work or they might be the ones reaching out to teachers if there’s something extra that’s going on that’s impacting the kid’s performance, so their reach is really beyond the 9th grade team. It really goes to all the teachers that might have an impact on their 9th-grade caseloads.”
In addition to collaborating with educators, OTCs work closely with ninth-grade Assistant Principals (APs). OTCs and ninth-grade APs have regular one-on-one meetings, where they are able to review the statuses of students on their caseload, reflect on progress, and work to develop interventions for students experiencing challenges. Some schools strategically place APs close to OTCs in the building, which as one administrator noted, “creates a system that works as far as communication” and “creates that atmosphere of collaboration.”
RELATIONSHIP WITH CAREGIVERS
The OTC strategy provides a valuable opportunity for schools to foster strong partnerships with caregivers. As one administrator notes, “A lot of the parents of at-risk kids have also had negative experiences with the school or the school system and so changing that or kind of pushing back on that can be challenging at times.” OTCs serve as a critical bridge linking the school and their students’ homes, sharing information and working to build a supportive relationship. As one administrator notes, “[OTCs are] not just calling if there’s an issue. [They are] connecting with families to invite them [to] after-school sessions and things like that, [which] allows them to build those relationships.”
OTCs model what one administrator noted as an “empathetic approach” in their communication with caregivers and engage in activities such as home mailings, phone calls, text messages, and home visits. These activities help OTCs build trust with the caregivers, making OTCs, as one administrator noted, “the ones who the parents are gonna reach out to immediately when they’re not sure what to do.” Building caregiver relationships allow OTCs to better understand the factors that influence the lives of the students. As one administrator noted, this communication enables OTCs to “have a bird’s eye view to the vulnerabilities and comfortability of the kids and the family with regard to school and so that is powerful in terms of their ability to influence change in habits for the long term.”
* The RISE Data Hub is a secure, action-oriented data platform built by educators, for educators to promote on-track achievement and postsecondary success for all students. For more information, visit the RISE Data Hub webpage: ctrise.org/datahub/
The most helpful supports that OTCs provide to students on their caseload are: (1) accountability and motivation, (2) academics and school support, and (3) social and emotional support.
The strengths of the OTCs lies in the way that they are able to hold their students accountable for the expectations of high school and motivate them to succeed, while providing them with both the academic and school support, and social and emotional support they may need to navigate novel challenges experienced in high school.
OTCs support students by building knowledge, skills, and mindsets in three areas.
ACCOUNTABILITY AND MOTIVATION:
OTCs hold their students accountable for their on-track success at regular check-ins. They provide motivation to their students to get and stay on-track through their encouragement and incentives.
ACADEMIC AND SCHOOL SUPPORT:
OTCs provide space and opportunity to help students complete classwork, prepare for exams, and gain the study and time management skills they need to build a successful high school career. They also support students in addressing academic or school challenges.
SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL SUPPORT:
OTCs serve as a caring and safe adult who students can talk to about sensitive topics impacting their social and emotional health. OTCs support students in developing skills that help students process and regulate their emotions in productive ways.
ACCOUNTABILITY AND MOTIVATION
OTCs have consistent 1:1 check-ins with students to help students stay on-track and focused. OTCs monitor the ontrack statuses of students on their caseload (i.e., attendance, behavior, and course grades) and check-in with students about their performance. This consistent and proactive monitoring and checking in with students on their caseload allows OTCs to hold their students accountable for their performance in school to intervene and support students before issues get too out of control.
Several students noted that having their OTC have consistent check-ins with them, where they encouraged them to stay on-track with their work, was a key to their success. One student credits her on-track status to the work with her OTC, saying “She’s really motivating [because] I feel like if she wasn’t my On-Track Coach, I feel like I wouldn’t be on-track right now. [Because] she’s always giving me tips on how to keep my grades up.” Students used the survey to talk about the benefits of check-ins with their OTC, including quotes such as:
• “She always checks in with me to see how I’m doing in my classes, which helps keep me on-track.”
• “I find it really helpful that my coach reminds me of what I need to do to pass and checks my grades regularly.”
• “The check-ins make sure I stay focused and don’t fall behind; I really appreciate having that support.”
OTCs motivate students to set goals and behave in ways that support their on-track success. OTCs work with students to help them understand the importance of their Grade 9 performance for their future success. As one student noted, “[My OTC] told me and showed me how bad grades for freshman year is really like the foundation of the rest of the years in high school and if I do bad… in the first couple of quarters, I might not be able to make it up in a third and fourth quarter and that could really affect me [in] the long run in high school.”
OTCs help students prioritize their goals and work to develop behaviors that support goal accomplishment. As one student noted, his OTC helped him understand, “If I don’t finish school, it’s gonna reflect on my career. Like it’s gonna cut out certain stuff that I can and cannot do. And for me, I’m big on sports, so I already know I have to be eligible to play certain sports and have a certain GPA or something so that’s the main reason why I come to school.”
OTCs support students in not only succeeding in ninth grade, but also in thinking about their long-term plans and helping students understand the work required to achieve some of their longer-term goals, such as pursuing their postsecondary plans. One student talked about how her OTC helped her strategize around the GPA that she needed to obtain in high school in order to get into college; “She’ll tell you tips on what you really need with college and stuff you have like a specific GPA in order to get into a college. So she’ll give you these little tips to make sure you are able to hit that GPA and make sure you’re actually able to get to where you want to be in life. So she gives you a little guide to lead you to where you need to be.”
OTCs believe in students’ ability to succeed and provide them with advice and encouragement. One student noted that the most helpful thing their OTC does in keeping them on-track is “giving out advice and like believing in the students, knowing they could do better.” Another student echoed this sentiment, noting, “She’s very supportive and reassured me about a lot of my grades and encouraged me when I thought I couldn’t do it.”
OTCs provide incentives to students to motivate their on-track success. In addition to motivating students with their words and advice, OTCs also motivate students to be successful through incentives. As one student noted, “Oh, like they would like sometimes they would make gift bags with candy. Like could have like a taco Tuesday for like if you get good grades You know, like, you like, you, like, you earned it. It would push you to get good grades, you know like kids like food and like they’ll give food to like the goods that earn my good grades and perfect attendance.” This focus on extrinsic motivators is designed to help build and support the intrinsic motivation of students.
ACADEMIC AND SCHOOL SUPPORT
OTCs help students adjust to the change in school structure and workload from middle to high school. The transition from middle school to high school can be a very challenging experience, especially for students who enter high school exhibiting risk factors, such as academic, behavioral, social, or attendance issues. Students shared how high school required them to work at a faster pace compared to middle school, making it easier to fall behind and harder to catch up. One student talked about this challenge, saying, “[In] high school, it’s like you have one day all these classes and another day we have different classes. So in that day we learn something and then we get a lot of work through that whole day, which we have to focus on, and if we don’t get that done, for example, for homework. We have another day, which is different classes so we’re focused on different things and wind up forgetting about last night’s homework.” OTCs work with students by providing them with opportunities to do their work and by helping them build the foundational skills to equip them to succeed in the high school environment.
OTCs help students build skills in time management and prioritization. One student talked about how her OTC helped her after a rough start to the school year, “I was slacking a lot. And, she called me down to her office and we had a talk about my grades and stuff and one thing she did request for me was to get a planner to organize my work in its days so that I can actually prioritize one thing at a time. And it’s really helped me to this day because like now I’m getting essays done and I’m getting good grades.”
Another student noted how his OTC helped him manage his grades with the use of trackers: “They would give us trackers to keep track of our grades and have our teachers put comments on it so they know what to do to help us with our grades.” These practices help students to develop the skills that they will need as they progress through their high school careers.
OTCs provide resources, opportunities, and support to students to help them complete coursework. OTCs typically have office spaces where students can visit to do classwork. Students in all of the focus groups noted the helpfulness of having a space to work in the presence of their OTC, who can help them if they hit a roadblock or challenge with their work. As one student noted, “It’s like we focus better when we’re in her space.” Another student noted having an appreciation for when his OTC invites him to his room, saying, “Sometimes I could be in class and he’s gonna call me down to help me work to do some work with him, to do better because I, well, I’m in like the closed environment, like not much people around me I, I focus better.” In addition to benefiting from direct classwork support, students also noted that it was helpful to have their OTC refer them to resources, such as Khan Academy, that could support them in succeeding academically.
OTCs serve as a resource for students to help them problem-solve and resolve issues interfering with their success and well-being. One administrator noted, “I think their primary role in supporting the kids is, they are advocates for the students. So whether they’re approaching a teacher to identify the critical assignments or see how far back makeup work can go, or maybe there’s a conflict between that teacher and student… the OTC is the first advocate for the student in fulfilling whatever the need is for that student at school.” When asked about the types of problems he goes to his OTC for, one student responded, “Problems with a teacher or with another student. Like I would talk to them about it and we would always solve the problem, talk to the person, stuff like that.”
SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL SUPPORT
OTCs provide a space where students can go to receive the social and emotional support needed to navigate challenges that many ninth graders may face and build the skills to address challenges independently. Having this space is a key benefit of working with an OTC. As one student noted, her OTC’s “supportiveness was the biggest thing, her always being a constant presence.” Another student also spoke on the closeness of her relationship with her OTC, saying, “We’re close because I feel like I could talk to her about anything and everything. I feel comfortable talking to her and whenever I need help on something, she’s always there for me.” Many students in the focus group noted that their OTC was the first person they reached out to when an issue came up.
OTCs can provide a safe space for students to process their experiences and regulate their emotions. They often support students in dealing with issues with the people in their lives including friends, romantic partners, caregivers, and educators. OTCs can work to de-escalate emotional experiences that their students are facing. As one student describes, his OTC “calmed me down because the situation that happened it kinda made me very mad. But even here, [I] talked to him about it… [and] everything just went away. I just relaxed.” OTCs can also help students to build the capacity to be able to better handle difficult situations through the advice that they give. As one student shared, “Usually I need some guidance at some point because a lot of stuff [is] going on [in] my family too. So she’ll always give me some tips to help me deal with the situation that’s going on so it doesn’t affect me mentally.”
IMPLICATIONS & RECOMMENDATIONS
The OTC strategy was developed to address the high rates of course failure and retention among ninth-grade students in the RISE Core Network. The findings from this report show that the OTC strategy is helping the most vulnerable students experience success as they transition into high school. Compared to their peers, students supported by OTCs see gap closure in their academics and attendance, catching up with their classmates.
Students benefit when they have access to support staff who can help them navigate the transition from middle school to high school. Grade 9 is a critical time for students to adapt to a new environment with increased expectations and higher stakes. Wraparound support staff are vital in providing holistic support for students, particularly those demonstrating greater needs. Having these caring adults can help increase a student’s connection to school and motivation to succeed.
KEY RECOMMENDATIONS:
• Invest in adequate support staffing to enable lower student-to-adult caseload ratios.
• Facilitate and prioritize collaboration between middle school and high school staff, enabling proactive supports for incoming students.
• Direct staffing time and resources towards the students who have the greatest need.
Strong data management systems are essential to allow high schools to proactively identify incoming students with high needs and to monitor their progress over the year. This report has highlighted the importance of using eighth grade data to identify students in need of extra support in the ninth grade. OTCs and other school staff benefited from data to increase their understanding of the students entering their school building, like eighth grade academic, attendance, and behavioral data. OTCs and other educators then continued to use tools like the RISE Data Hub to identify students in need of support and assess and monitor changes to student performance throughout the academic year.
KEY RECOMMENDATIONS:
• Invest in data tools that provide educators real-time visibility around students’ on-track statuses and progress through high school.
• Enable and initiate secure data-sharing and other communication between high schools and their feeder middle schools.
• Facilitate and enable data sharing for students who move between district systems (i.e. transfer students and those with greater transciency).
Key Insights for District Leaders and District/State Policymakers
Key Insights for Educators, Administrators, and Teams
Students with high needs profiles from middle school benefit from specialized support in Grade 9. Working towards the goal of ensuring that all incoming Grade 9 students successfully promote to Grade 10 with the foundational knowledge, skills, mindsets, and behaviors to make it to on-time graduation is imperative. Many students noted how OTCs were a critical support who helped them to develop solutions to help them navigate challenges they faced in Grade 9, such as increased workloads, new schedules, difficulties managing time, conflicts with peers or teachers, and more.
KEY RECOMMENDATIONS:
• Explicitly educate students on high school expectations and the impact of their high school performance on postsecondary opportunities.
• Provide supports that equip students with the skills and practices to achieve on-track success (e.g., time management skills, study skills, self-advocacy skills).
• Provide opportunities for students to work with an adult to address challenges they are facing in school.
OTC are able to have a deeper understanding of the key factors influencing a students performance, enabling them to serve as effective collaborators with other school staff and caregivers. As a result of their focused caseload of approximately 60 students, OTCs are able to monitor their students’ data and provide more personalized support. OTCs are able to leverage this deep understanding of their students to enhance their collaboration with other key adults in their students’ lives. In order to do this work effectively, there needs to be an on-track culture and collaborative structures in place at a school, which facilitate the effectiveness of the On-Track Coach. For example, OTCs benefited from a clear definition of ninth grade on-track, coupled with a tool to be able to monitor students’ on-track statuses over the course of the year.
KEY RECOMMENDATIONS:
• Invest in OTCs or a similar structure that designates staff to serve a caseload of students with the highest needs.
• Implement school structures that facilitate communication and collaboration between school staff supporting student success, such as consistent grade-level data team meetings.
• Build a Grade 9 on-track culture that prioritizes on-track success and ducates school stakeholders around the critical importance of Grade 9.
• Provide opportunities for students to work with an adult to address challenges they are facing in school.
Key Insights for the RISE Network and Partners
While end-of-year on-track rates of caseload and off-caseload students are comparable, a gap exists in the percentage of these student groups with college-ready GPAs (i.e., > 3.0) and ADAs > 90%. Even for student who are promoted to tenth grade, having a low GPA or high absenteeism may have ripple effects that make it more difficult to graduate on-time with a college ready GPA. In order to ensure that we are setting up the students we serve to succeed beyond ending the year on-track, it is important that we monitor metrics that may show challenges in student performance, even if they are not failing.
KEY RECOMMENDATIONS:
• Continue to improve use of the RISE Data Hub to monitor not just on-track status, but also, GPA and attendance.
• Deliver interventions to support students with lower GPAs and/or chronic absenteeism, even if they are passing enough classes to be considered on-track.
• Conduct evaluations that assess differences in on-time graduation outcomes of students who end Grade 9 on-track based on differences in GPA and attendance bands.
The on-track coaching strategy is supporting the on-track success of students with high need profiles from middle school. The findings of this evaluation show that working with an OTC during ninth grade can help students gain the support they need to be successful. In our current educational context, where student disengagement is a pressing issue and many students are struggling to succeed in high school, it is important for RISE to help spread strategies that help schools to better support students.
KEY RECOMMENDATIONS:
• Share findings learned from this evaluation with diverse stakeholders and decision-makers.
• Look for opportunities to make the OTC program more sustainable, financially and otherwise, for existing and new partner schools.
• Scale this work to other schools dealing with high Grade 9 retention rates.
REFERENCES
1. Healthy People 2030. “High School Graduation.” Accessed November 1, 2024. https://odphp.health.gov/healthypeople/priority-areas/social-determinants-health/literature-summaries/high-school-graduation#cit27
2. Boston Consulting Group Getting Young People Back on Track: A Study of Connecticut’s At-Risk and Disconnected Young People. Dalio Education, 2023. https://www.dalioeducation.org/report/
3. Allensworth, Elaine, and John Easton The On-Track Indicator as a Predictor of High School Graduation. University of Chicago, 2005. https://consortium.uchicago.edu/sites/default/files/2023-06/The%20On-Track%20Indicator-Jun2005-Consortium.pdf
4. Strawhun, Jenna, Reece L. Peterson, and Ashley Stein Staff-Student Relationships - Student Engagement Project. University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2013. https://k12engagement.unl.edu/sites/unl.edu.cehs.special-ed-communic-disorders.student-engagement-project/files/media/file/Staff%20Student%20 Relationships%2010-18-2013.pdf
5. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Fostering School Connectedness. 2009. https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/21066/cdc_21066_DS1.pdf
6. American School Counselor Association (ASCA) Student-to-School-Counselor Ratio 2022–2023. https://www.schoolcounselor.org/getmedia/a988972b-1faa-4b5f-8b9e-a73b5ac44476/ratios-22-23-alpha.pdf
7. Boston Consulting Group Getting Young People Back on Track: A Study of Connecticut’s At-Risk and Disconnected Young People. Dalio Education, 2023. https://www.dalioeducation.org/report/
8. UChicago Consortium and Network for College Success Developing the Risk and Opportunity Framework. https://ncs.uchicago.edu/tool/developing-risk-and-opportunity-framework
9. Allensworth, Elaine M., et al Middle Grade Indicators of Readiness in Chicago Public Schools. University of Chicago, 2014. https://consortium.uchicago.edu/sites/default/files/2018-10/Middle%20Grades%20Report.pdf
The authors of this report would like to give special thanks to those who helped us throughout this evaluation process including the On-Track Coaches for their helpful insight, the RISE Product and Engineering teams for their amazing data tools, and the school administrators and students who participated in our focus groups.