CYFAR SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES PROJECT - JUNTOS

We are implementing Juntos 4-H in Indiana. The Juntos Program is an intensive long-term program made up of four componemts:1. Juntos Family Engagement via a 5 or 6 week workshop series and other family nights and family events.2. Regular Juntos 4-H Club meetings with a focus on tutoring, life skills, and community service.3. Monthly One-on-One Success Coaching and/or Mentoring by an adult who monitors their academics and coaches them to achieve their academic goals.4. Juntos summer programming that includes the Juntos Summer Academy and other local 4-H summer programs and events.According to The Pew Research Center, the 'U.S. Hispanic population reached 62.1 million in 2020, an increase of 23% over the previous decade that outpaced the nation's 7% overall population growth' (Passel, Lopez, & Cohn, 2022). (Please note that throughout this proposal, the authors use the terms Hispanic and Latino interchangeably. The authors recognize the differences and the challenges of variation in research and government documents. When working with clientele, we are cautious to use their preferred terminology). Thirty-seven percent of Latinos in Indiana 25 years and older have not completed high school or an equivalent level of education (three times higher than non-Hispanic whites).Fewer than 15% of Latino adults in Indiana have a college or a professional degree (Thelin & Sapp, 2016). The Indiana State Board of Education and Indiana Commission for Higher Education have priorities established to address the achievement gaps that occur among Hoosier youth. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, an achievement gap is 'when one group of students outperforms another group and the difference in average scores for the two groups is statistically significant' (Hemphill, Venneman & Rahman, 2011). While achievement gaps are commonly associated with racial disparities, they can also affect groups such as low-income students and English language learners. Achievement gaps are often seen not only on test scores, but in many aspects of the education system, such as gaps in access to high quality facilities, teachers, resources, and opportunities. Although gaps between racial and ethnic groups have decreased over the last decade, Hispanic youth are still more likely to have dropped out of high school than children of other major races/ethnicities (Heckman & LaFontaine, 2010). In 2015, the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanics (designed to address educational disparities faced by the Hispanic community in the United States) selected Juntos as one of the signature programs models helping to close the achievement gap. North Carolina State University developed the Juntos Program 15 years ago and has worked with states around the nation to train and support their own Juntos Program implementation. Juntos is currently in 16 states across the US. We are very pleased that North Carolina State Juntos faculty and staff have agreed to support our expansion of Juntos in Indiana.We will focus on helping young Latino teens understand the importance of sense of belonging in school and community organizations (Juntos 4-H Club) in addition to the importance of school attendance and grades. We will also create opportunities for increased knowledge, attitudes, life skills and aspirations toward academic success ultimately leading to increased self-advocacy. As we work with parents, we desire to assist with developing their knowledge of the importance of monitoring teens' academic progress and the importance of parental advocacy, ultimately helping them to recognize the skills teens need to successfully transition to high school.