"Success at Every Step: How 23 Programs Support Youth on the Path to College and Beyond (2009) describes programs that have been proven to help young people successfully complete high school and be prepared for success in postsecondary education and careers. These programs represent a wide range of interventions, including school-wide reform initiatives, community-based afterschool services, work-based learning opportunities, and college access programs. From an analysis of the included programs, the report identifies common programmatic and structural elements that may contribute to their effectiveness and summarizes key outcomes."
The programs in this compendium increase the number of young people who graduate from high school prepared to make informed decisions about education and who experience success in college and employment. The evaluations found a wide range of positive outcomes, which can be organized into the categories of secondary-level academic outcomes, planning for college and careers, postsecondary academic outcomes, career-related outcomes, and developing personal resources. The publication also sets forth a logic model that illustrates the complexity of the process of preparing youth to succeed in careers, lifelong learning, and civic engagement, as well as the various systems and service providers that support youth at each step of the developmental pipeline.
The publication is an easy-to-read guide designed to help national, state, and local policymakers and practitioners better understand how to support college- and career-readiness for all students.