Northwest Education Access Guidebook

The Power of Supportive Relationships A Student-Centered Approach to Postsecondary Success.

Table of Contents 2 About Northwest Education Access

Our mission and values, who we serve, and organizational history.

7 About this Guide

How we can scale this work together and continue to improve postsecondary success in our communities.

8 Why This Work Matters

What we learned from students and how it informs our program.

12 Our Model

How our student-led model centers trusting relationships and a network of support.

14 Prioritizing a Culture of Inquiry Through an Antiracist Lens

How we are integrating and operationalizing antiracist priorities in all aspects of our work.

18 Community Partnerships

The communities and postsecondary institutions with which we collaborate for student success.

22 Components of Student Support

These components can be used as a guide for service providers in enhancing their postsecondary support services.

22

Supportive Approaches

25

Program & Career Exploration

26

Steps to Enrollment

29

Paying for Postsecondary Pathways

31

Persistence & Continued Support

32 We’re Here to Partner With You

Northwest Education Access | 1

About Northwest Education Access MISSION Northwest Education Access provides comprehensive and individualized support to help low-income young people, ages 16-29, build their own path to higher education and beyond.

WHO WE SERVE We provide comprehensive and individualized support to help low-income young people, ages 16-29, build their own path to higher education and beyond. NW Education Access supports alternative routes to high school completion and the transition into postsecondary pathways—from enrollment to graduation.

The young people we serve navigate complex education barriers, compounded by inequitable access to basic needs, like housing, mental health services, and childcare. They do this while experiencing institutional racism and surviving generational and historical trauma. Many of the young people we serve are considered “Opportunity Youth,” meaning they are typically disconnected from school and/or work. Despite a range of backgrounds, our students all share a strong motivation to complete their education and demonstrate resilience and perseverance in the face of adversity.

2 | Northwest Education Access

WHO WE ARE

22

Staff Members

13

Board Directors

8

Student Advisory Board Members

75

Community Volunteers

VALUES NW Education Access believes: • Education is a human right.

• Education is a lifelong process.

• Every person is the expert on their own life.

• Every individual has the right to selfdetermination.

• There is inherent worth and dignity in each human being.

• There is power in community and supportive relationships.

• Every person deserves an education that meets their needs and goals.

• Our success is measured by the well-being and success of our students.

• Institutional racism and systemic injustices create substantial barriers to access and opportunity.

About Northwest Education Access | 3

HISTORY 2000

2002

Dr. Polly Trout volunteers with students experiencing homelessness, helping them earn GEDs and transition to college.

Seattle Education Access (SEA) is founded by Dr. Trout as a volunteer-run drop-in center in the University District.

2012

2011 SEA initiates a pilot expansion into areas of South King County with high rates of educational inequity.

SEA fully commits to serving students at partner sites across King County and closes its dropin center.

2015 SEA is awarded Social Innovation Fund Grant in partnership with United Way of King County and significantly increases staff support.

2019 SEA contracts with a racial equity consultant who provides ongoing anti-racism facilitation and training, and prioritizes dedicated staff and board time for anti-racism work.

4 | Northwest Education Access

2020 SEA receives funding from Washington State to begin expansion into Pierce and Snohomish Counties.

2008 2006

SEA expands to four staff positions

SEA receives funding to hire its first full-time, paid Executive Director.

2017

2018

An Urban Institute report shows students in high school completion/ GED programs are 3x as likely—and male students of color are 7x more likely—to enroll in college when supported

by SEA, compared to other local programs.

SEA receives its first long-term public funding from the King County Best Starts for Kids Levy, embedding SEA services into programs throughout South King County.

2022 2020 SEA formally changes its name to Northwest Education Access to reflect that it has been serving students far beyond Seattle for many years.

Northwest Education Access and its partners receive funding from King County Promise.

2022 Celebrating 20 Years! Northwest Education Access formally launches its capacity-building efforts, including this guide.

About Northwest Education Access | 5

6 | Northwest Education Access

About This Guide Everyone gets help along the way—through friends, family, or network connections.

NW Education Access believes in the power of these connections and works to bring them to each student we serve. Supportive relationships matter.

SCALING OUR WORK TOGETHER There are countless community-based organizations doing great work, often specializing in serving specific populations. Our goal is to share best practices and tools so organizations that have already built strong relationships can help students successfully transition to postsecondary programs. Our hope is that we can all partner to scale this important work. Every student deserves this support, and we can only make it widely available if we work together.

OUR WORKSHOPS To share this work, we have developed a series of workshops that cover the five core components of our work discussed in this guide, as well as an education planning toolkit consisting of resources and best practices to support doing this work. We are also committed to providing follow-up support to any organization we work with.

HOW TO USE THIS GUIDE This guide is for service providers who are interested in creating or enhancing programming to support their participants in accessing higher education opportunities.

The “Culture of Inquiry” sections woven throughout include questions that we asked ourselves in order to learn, improve, and make actionable changes in our work. You can use these questions and our learnings to investigate your own approach, and to envision opportunities for enhancing your program. Our hope is that you can adapt the tools and information from this guide in a way that is most responsive to the community you serve.

About this Guide | 7

Why This Work Matters Those of us who have worked with students in underserved communities—or who have been part of those communities ourselves—have seen how institutional racism and systemic injustice push those students out of traditional education programs. At NW Education Access, we know that higher education and career training programs can open up huge opportunities, and we have been working for the past 20 years to help students break down barriers to get there.

Common barriers students face include:

HOUSING

“

T R A N S P O RTAT I O N

M E N TA L H E A LT H

T EC H N O LO GY AC C E S S

E M P LOYM E N T/ FINANCES

L EG A L ISSUES

I was completely lost. I felt like there was not a lot of information for people like me. It was tough.”

NAHUM student

8 | Northwest Education Access

CHILDCARE

P H YS I C A L H E A LT H

I M M I G R AT I O N

“

“

Every student is different.

Everybody’s need is different.

Meet the student where they’re at.”

VICTORIA student

CREATING PATHS FOR CHANGE REPORT To better understand the barriers students face, we partnered in 2019 with the University of Washington and the Community Center for Education Results to listen to young adults about why they left school before completing a high school diploma. We examined 325 responses to the question “Why did you leave the traditional academic pathway?”

Some of the top reasons include: • Bias & Negative School Climate

• Unmet Basic Needs

• Low adult expectations

• Lack of mental health services

• Lack of racial representation among teachers

• Family instability and trauma

• Exclusionary discipline

• Navigating parenthood

• Bullying and peer conflict

• Lack of support for medical issues

• Insufficient Academic Supports • Lack of transparency regarding academic standing • Lack of support for students’ individual learning needs • Lack of support when a student changes schools

When asked about reengaging in school, students shared that: • They want to complete high school and go on to college.

• Relationships motivate reengagement.

• Positive attitudes and behaviors from adults matter.

What we learned from students cemented many of the values that were already core to our work: the power of relationships, the value of support networks and ample resources, and the fact that all students want to set and achieve educational goals.

NW Education Access strives to continue to create spaces to hear from students and to place what we learn from them at the center of our work. This includes improving access to academic supports, making postsecondary processes transparent and flexible, and supporting students as they navigate academic disruption and return to education programs.

Why This Work Matters | 9

10 | Northwest Education Access

“

URBAN INSTITUTE EVALUATION This multi-year evaluation, published in 2019, compared college enrollment rates of South King County opportunity youth receiving navigation support from NW Education Access against youth who did not receive that support.

The study found:

3x as likely to enroll in postsecondary education

Persistence data measures whether a student remains enrolled during the second year of their postsecondary program.

Of the 143 students who enrolled in our program in 2017, 71% have either graduated or are still currently active in our program.

Students who began their postsecondary programs between 2016-2019

NW Education Access participants who are young men of color

7x as likely to enroll in postsecondary education

Persistence

“

NW Education Access participants

NW Education Access Persistence Data

71%

NW Education Access participants

5354% All Students

[My Education Advocate] helped me a lot. Basically, I see them as my Google …

We find a how-to for everything.”

ERMIAS student

Why This Work Matters | 11

Our Model NW EDUCATION ACCESS NETWORK

ACADEMIC PLANNING • Education Plan

• Applications

• Self-Advocacy Skills

• Test Prep • Transfers

• Re-entering School

• Registration

• Ongoing Guidance

You’ll have access to tutors and mentors through our network of volunteers, alumni, and staff.

• Academic Tutoring

WAYS A AL

ST

YOU

• FAFSA & WASFA Applications • Scholarships & Tuition Waivers • Reinstatement & Renewal

R • THE

• Grants & Loans

PROGRAM & CAREER • Apprenticeships • Associate & Bachelors Degrees • Interest Assessments • Career Training Certificates • Networking Events • Occupation Databases

12 | Northwest Education Access

THE CEN

FUNDING

T

UDENT ,

EDUCATION ADVOCATE You’ll get long-term, flexible, one-on-one support from someone who will take the time to get to know you and your dreams.

• Career Exploration

• Job • Informational Shadowing Interviews

TE

ENROLLMENT

STUDENT NETWORK Get to know students on a similar journey.

• Community Building • Leadership & Advocacy Skills

CAMPUS & COMMUNITY NETWORK Our partnerships on campus and in community mean you are never without resources.

• CommunityBased Organizations • On-Campus Support Services

NW Education Access offers low-barrier, no-cost support services to students interested in pursuing education and career goals.

Our decentralized model reduces barriers for students to utilize our services.

We meet students at partner sites, colleges, and community spaces where students feel comfortable. We’re also able to support students virtually, depending on the needs of the student.

Supportive and trusting relationships are cornerstones of our model.

The mission of the Education Advocate is to create a strong, long-term relationship with each student that centers student choice and will last throughout their educational journey.

Building that trust entails celebrating triumphs, supporting them through educational disruptions without judgment, navigating complex systems, and whole-heartedly believing that students are the experts in their own lived experience and decisions. Education Advocates demonstrate loyalty to each student, and not to any particular education institution or organization.

Education Advocates provide comprehensive, open-ended, one-on-one support by: • Serving students at every stage in their education pathway.

• Creating individualized postsecondary education plans based on a student’s interests and goals.

• Providing systems navigation, mentoring, academic advising, and coaching.

• Accompanying students to appointments on campus as needed.

• Staying informed on the educational and social services available in their region.

• Bridging connections to resources and social services to address life barriers.

Our volunteers offer academic support and help prepare students to enter the workforce.

Our students have access to a network of community volunteers from a variety of professional backgrounds. These volunteers are available for academic tutoring or to provide insight into professions through job shadows, professional mentorship, and informational interviews.

Our Student Advisory Board keeps the student perspective centered in all of our decision-making.

This group of student leaders represents a broader student voice at NW Education Access.

Members support our Board of Directors and staff in organizational decision-making. They play an active role in regional advocacy, while building their leadership skills and gaining experience in a non-profit setting. Members serve a two-year term and are compensated with a stipend.

Our Model | 13

Prioritizing a Culture of Inquiry through an Antiracist Lens NW Education Access is on an evolving path of discovery and change in how we are in relationship with each other and our community. Inquiry is at the core of our anti-racism work as we question norms, patterns, power dynamics, and processes. There is no standard process for undertaking this work, but it is critical that each organization develop its own path toward anti-racism or else risk perpetuating harm.

As part of our work, we are creating more space for our staff to be curious, ask questions, learn from each other, and question the status quo. This has included regular meetings where staff discuss the work we do and implement changes as needed. We have also developed new mechanisms to get valuable input from students and volunteers.

To help operationalize our learnings across the organization, we’ve created our Anti-Racist Team (ART), which is made up of staff, board, and student representatives.

“

As a foundational part of our inquiry process, we explicitly examine how white supremacy culture norms show up in our work and have impacted every aspect of our organization, including the students we serve.

Anti-racism work is an imperative for our organization so that we don’t replicate the messages and patterns of oppression that our young people experience as they move through the education system.

At the core of our equity efforts is a commitment to question EVERYTHING and to stick through the discomfort as we move toward the process of creating new norms and ways of being together.”

LAURA DIZAZZO Executive Director of NW Education Access

14 | Northwest Education Access

C U LT U R E O F I N Q U I RY The Question: How does the norm of individualism* show up in the work of Education Advocates and what antidotes can we try? *“Individualism is our cultural story—that we make it on our own (or should), without help, while pulling ourselves up by our own bootstraps.” Tema Okun

Our Approach: We recognized that our work was siloed across and even within departments. This was especially true for Education Advocates, who frequently interact with students, but had little opportunity to collaborate with other staff.

Based on what we discovered, we have implemented:

Team-based approaches to serving students.

Investments in new staff support positions.

Intentional partnership in community.

Capacity-building with other organizations for mutual learning.

Designated staff spaces for: • Understanding Secondary Trauma as a Collective, an optional five-session group focused on collective care.

• Monthly group check-ins for Education Advocates who serve in nearby regions.

• Tea Time Meetings for staff to come together and connect in a meaningful way.

Prioritizing a Culture of Inquiry Through an Antiracist Lens | 15

C U LT U R E O F I N Q U I RY The Question: How can we enhance students’ sense of community and social capital, better support students as they prepare to graduate, and continue to provide opportunities after graduation?

Our Approach: We formed the Student and Community Engagement Team, which is working to:

Organize and facilitate recurring gatherings for students to build community, share resources, and have meaningful discussions about their experiences navigating postsecondary education.

Improve outreach to current students, students nearing graduation, and alumni to promote professional mentorship, resume and cover letter support, internship and job support services, and other resources.

Build a more structured mentorship program for students and alumni to receive one-onone professional guidance from volunteers that work in their field of interest.

16 | Northwest Education Access

Continue hosting and improving career pathway events, where students and alumni can hear from professionals in their fields of interest.

Recruit alumni to join our Board of Directors or volunteer network to support current students.

Establish a committee of alumnus to support strengthening our network.

Expand and diversify our volunteer pool to better reflect the identities and professional interests of the students we serve.

WHERE WE’RE GROWING At NW Education Access, we believe in continuous growth and self-exploration. In this adaptive model, we want to continue to question how we deliver our services. Looking ahead, here is an example of how we are currently challenging our status quo and finding new ways to approach our work.

Prioritizing a Culture of Inquiry Through an Antiracist Lens | 17

Community Partnerships NW Education Access works to create intentional, mutually beneficial partnerships with community-based organizations (CBOs) and postsecondary institutions throughout the Puget Sound region.

When we work together, we are all better off.

No one can do this work alone. In fact, approaching this work individually causes harm by perpetuating the status quo. There is power in community—engaging and listening to the people we serve, holding space for each other’s strengths, collectively identifying gaps across institutions, and creatively envisioning new ways of approaching the work.

Partnering with postsecondary institutions and CBOs benefits students by: Creating an interconnected network of support that enables us to readily refer students to appropriate resources as the need arises.

Making students feel safe and comfortable by meeting with them on-site where they already receive services.

WE WORK WITH 15 COMMUNITY TECHNICAL COLLEGES AND 30+ CBOS

18 | Northwest Education Access

Edmonds Community College – EdCap

Community-Based Partner Organizations • Airport Jobs

Shorline College Learning Center North

• Community Center for Education Results

North Seattle College

Lake Washington Institute of Technology

Seattle Central College Learning Center Seattle

Bellevue College

• Graduate Tacoma • Latino Educational Training Institute (LETI)

• The Mockingbird Society • Neighborhood House • New Horizons • Northwest Credible Messenger • Nurse Family Partnership

New Start High School

iGrad

• Goodwin Connections

• MetroCenter YMCA

Career Link

Highline College

• Goodwill Youth GED Program

• LifeWire

South Seattle College Georgetown

South Seattle College

Pathway to College

• Friends of Youth

Shorline – CEO

Renton Technical College Tukwila Youth Source

• Oasis Youth Center • Rainier Athletes • ROOTS Young Adult Shelter • Seattle Housing Authority • Solid Ground • Southwest Youth and Family Services • Street Youth Ministries • Teen Feed

Federal Way Open Doors Fresh Start Willie Stewart Tacoma Academy Community College Clover Park Technical College

Green River Open Doors

• THA College Housing Assistance Program • Treehouse • University District Library • University District Youth Center • Workforce Central • YearUp • YMCA Center for Young Adults • YouthCare

Community Partnerships | 19

C U LT U R E O F I N Q U I RY The Question: How can we take an intentional and collective approach in supporting our community?

Our Approach:

Reviewed quantitative data on educational outcomes and disconnection rates across our service area to help identify areas of opportunity.

To begin to answer this question we’ve taken the following steps:

Identified our strengths and gaps as a provider through internal and external stakeholder conversations.

“

Conducted an in-depth student survey and hosted a series of community listening sessions to gather youth and community input.

Analyzed themes to identify high impact partnerships.

Utilized data and learnings to inform decision-making around new partnerships, funding opportunities, and advocacy efforts.

I’ve worked with NW Education Access for over twelve years, and I have witnessed hundreds of students’ lives change. This team has helped so many students dream bigger dreams for themselves and their families.”

KIANA DAVIS College and Career Pathways Faculty at Renton Technical College

20 | Northwest Education Access

Community Partnerships | 21

Components of Student Support Over the past 20 years, NW Education Access has worked to identify five core components of our work. While the work with each student will look a little different, these components can be used as a guide for service providers in expanding their postsecondary support.

SUPPORTIVE APPROACHES Prioritize building authentic and trusting relationships as you assist students in their education and career planning.

Top Tips • Support should be studentled. Students determine their education pathway and the timeline that best fits their identified education and career goals.

• Supportive and trusting relationships matter. Provide support without judgment.

Whole-heartedly know and believe that students are the experts in their own lived experiences and decisions.

• Celebrate successes— big and small.

22 | Northwest Education Access

“

C U LT U R E O F I N Q U I RY The Question: How has our intake policy and procedure perpetuated harm toward students?

Our Approach: We recognized that by introducing the intake form right away with students, we prioritized data over relationships, unintentionally mimicking other systems that have negatively impacted students.

We adapted our intake process to prioritize authentic relationship building by:

“

Creating an intake guide to support Education Advocates in establishing relationships and conducting informationgathering conversations, rather than filling out forms.

Having Education Advocates use their discretion on when to administer the intake form based on how rapport building is going—typically after three to four meetings.

Developing trainings to support Education Advocates with utilizing the intake guide and adopting these trainings into our onboarding process.

Removing information that we’d been collecting in our intake form that had the potential to be invasive to our students, such as criminal justice involvement.

I feel like the relationship has always been one of compassion, empathy, and support from day one. And that hasn’t changed. It’s just grown.”

CLARISSA student

Components of Student Support | 23

C U LT U R E O F I N Q U I RY The Question: How can we assist students in ongoing career exploration to ensure they have all the information necessary to make a fully informed decision about their academic and career pursuits?

Our Approach: We recognized the importance of ongoing career exploration, but due to a lack of time and expertise within the organization, we were limited in the support we could offer to students with this process.

We created a new position of Volunteer Services Manager to build out program and career exploration opportunities for students utilizing our volunteer pool of professionals from the community, including:

“

Career pathway information and networking events that give students the opportunity to connect with and learn from experts in various fields.

One-on-one meetings between students and volunteers for job shadowing, informational interviewing, and long-term professional mentoring.

[My Education Advocate] helped me figure out what kind of degree I wanted. And [that] helped me realize that I really do like science.

And I really do want to pursue optometry.

And she’s very supportive with that.

She really paved the way. I had an idea and she directed me to it.”

MIZPAJOY student

24 | Northwest Education Access

PROGRAM & CAREER EXPLORATION As our students’ needs change and evolve, so do their academic and career goals. In light of this, program and career exploration should be an ongoing process that is revisited often.

Top Tips • Inform students of all postsecondary options available to them, including: • Transfer programs • Bachelor programs • Apprenticeships • Professional/Technical programs • Research career(s) of interest with students to learn job responsibilities, education or training required, and wage and demand projections.

• Bridge intentional connections between students’ career goals and their program of interest.

• Encourage continued exploration opportunities, such as job shadows, informational interviews, internships, and career events.

Components of Student Support | 25

C U LT U R E O F I N Q U I RY STEPS TO ENROLLMENT

The Question:

Creating transparency around the enrollment process gives students the agency and ownership to establish a personalized pathway for beginning their academic and professional pursuits.

Our Approach:

Top Tips • Support students in making sense of all steps involved in the enrollment process by breaking down each step and creating time to answer questions.

• Develop an individualized timeline that is flexible and takes into consideration student needs, barriers, and goals.

• Prioritize additional time for navigating the financial aid process.

How can we make the enrollment process for postsecondary pathways individualized and flexible for students?

We recognized that the enrollment process outlined on websites of postsecondary institutions displayed inflexible timelines with limited information on how to successfully complete all steps of the process. We wanted to envision a way to create transparency around the enrollment process, while also taking into account student needs, goals and personal circumstances.

We created a flexible document to support students in making sense of the enrollment process and establishing a timeline that works best for them.

We help students to evaluate when adjustments to their individualized enrollment timeline may be beneficial.

We work to normalize adjustments to student enrollment timelines in order to reduce a sense of urgency* and allow time to identify other meaningful ways to prepare for their education. *sense of urgency, Tema Okun

26 | Northwest Education Access

“

“

I wouldn’t know where to start if it wasn’t for Mayra.

I would have been clueless and she helped me apply for financial aid, which is really great. I didn’t have to pay anything out of pocket.

She got me in the right courses that I need. She’s been there ever since we started working together guiding me, which is what I need.”

CHRISTIAN student

Components of Student Support | 27

C U LT U R E O F I N Q U I RY The Question: How can we make the complexities of securing and maintaining funding less daunting for students?

Our Approach: We recognized the importance of being alongside students every step of the way.

To make the financial aid process less daunting for students, our Educations Advocates prioritize:

“

Debunking misconceptions about funding that prevent students from pursuing postsecondary education.

Becoming familiar with student circumstances and experiences that can impact their access to financial aid (e.g., foster care, homelessness, parenting, immigration status) and the processes to secure aid.

Accompanying students to financial aid offices and meetings.

Building connections with staff involved in funding students.

Assisting students in reinstating funding when needed.

Creating space to build self-advocacy skills during the process.

Honestly, I had never heard of financial aid before. I had no idea that financial aid was a thing. I was under the impression that I would have to take a loan or I would have to work two jobs to pay everything out of pocket.

Thankfully that was not the case. Konto and Northwest Education Access gave me all the knowledge I needed about it, and it really made me feel more confident.”

JOSHUA student

28 | Northwest Education Access

PAYING FOR POSTSECONDARY PATHWAYS Paying for school is often the most stressful part of education planning.

We address this by providing individualized support each step of the way.

Top Tips • Learn about students’ individual identity, circumstances, and experiences in order to support them in identifying their funding eligibility.

• Understand the processes for securing different types of funding, such as: • Financial Aid (including grants, loans, work-study) • Career Training Funding • Scholarships • Stay up to date on changes to funding eligibility and documentation requirements, especially for undocumented students.

• Assist students with filling out the FAFSA or state aid applications, and completing additional financial aid documentation.

• Support students in understanding and assessing their cost of attendance and their financial aid award, including student loans, to make an informed decision.

Components of Student Support | 29

C U LT U R E O F I N Q U I RY The Question: How can we support students facing complex barriers during their academic experience?

Our Approach: We recognize that our students’ experiences in postsecondary education are compounded by institutionalized racism and inequitable access to basic needs. Our open-ended approach is holistic and not contingent upon a student’s enrollment or academic standing. We support students with navigating challenges as they arise by:

Bridging connections to resources and service providers.

Continuing to meet with and support students during pauses in their program.

“

Destigmatizing educational disruptions and recognizing that taking a break from school may be in the best interest of the student and their goals.

Supporting students with reenrolling when they’re ready.

There’s been multiple times in my path when I wanted to drop out but just even having support has made a difference.”

JADE student

30 | Northwest Education Access

PERSISTENCE & CONTINUED SUPPORT Enrolling in a program is just the beginning to a student’s academic and career journey. Long-term support is greatly impactful to a student’s experience throughout their education pathway and during academic disruptions.

Top Tips • Provide consistent communication and intentional support to students, especially toward the beginning of their program.

• Help students identify individualized academic success strategies and develop selfadvocacy skills.

• Assist students in addressing challenges they are facing by connecting them to resources on their campus and in the community.

• Support students in taking a break from their program and remain actively connected with them until they are ready to re-enroll.

• Ensure students nearing program completion have support in preparing to enter the workforce.

Components of Student Support | 31

We’re Here to Partner With You We recognize that each organization is unique in how it operates. We are dedicated to tailoring our trainings and resource toolkit, which encompasses the core components described in this guide, to best assist you in enhancing the postsecondary support you provide! If you feel your organization would benefit from this partnership, please connect with us at community@NWEducationAccess.org.

32 | Northwest Education Access

NWEducationAccess.org 6920 Roosevelt Way NE #355 Seattle, WA 98114

Check out our resource toolkit!

(206) 523-6200 Northwest-Education-Access NWEducationAccess NWEducationAcces VoicesOfNW_EA

“

REFERENCES • Creating Paths for Change: Understanding Student Disengagement and Reengagement. https://roadmapproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Creating-Paths-for-ChangeUnderstanding-Student-Disengagement-and-Reengagement.pdf • Urban Institute Evaluations: Local Summary From Reengagement to College. https:// roadmapproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/Opportunity-Youth-Local-Summary.pdf

“

• Full Evaluation: Opportunity Works Final Evaluation Report. https://roadmapproject.org/wpcontent/uploads/2019/09/Opportunity-Works-Back-on-Track.pdf • White Supremacy Culture by Tema Okun. https://www.whitesupremacyculture.info/

I feel like I can talk to [my Education Advocate] about anything. I’m not the only one she’s supporting, but she makes me feel like I’m the only one she’s supporting.”

MERVEILLE student

About Northwest Education Access | 33

“

NWEducationAccess.org

My educational advocates helped me prepare to become my own advocate.”

SANG-WON student