The New York City Join-A-School Partnership Program: Impacts, outcomes, implications. A case study
Abstract
The two-fold focus of this study was on the overall New York City Join-A-School Program between sixty businesses and public high schools and on a specific Join-A-School partnership between George Washington High School and Chemical Bank. From responses to questionnaires sent to both business and school liaisons, an overall profile of the New York City Join-A-School Program emerged. This research examined the history and goals of each partnership, the support provided by the business partners, the leadership roles taken by participants, the activities of each program and their impact, if any, that had been made on the school staff, students, parents, and on the curriculum. The school and business liaisons evaluated their programs, described problems encountered and made recommendations for improvement. Although both the business and schools had entered the partnerships with great expectations that could not always be fulfilled, a majority indicated that they wished to continue participating in the Join-A-School Program as the "only game in town." The infusion of the expertise of business personnel in the schools, funding for projects, and resources provided, improved the morale of the teachers and made teaching a less isolated endeavor. Case study techniques, used in the research of the George Washington High School-Chemical Bank Partnership, analyzed the program and documented the impact made on the individual participants including staff and students. The history and chronology of this program was described from its inception in the Fall of 1984 to the Spring of 1989. Students who had been involved in the program indicated that these new experiences had improved their self-perception and self-esteem. By changing their view of "what could be," many of these students indicated that they intended, as a result, to complete school. A positive impact had also been made on the teachers who participated in partnership activities. The Join-A-School Partnership Program's provision of resources, funding and business expertise brought a new sense of much-needed revival to the schools, but had made little impact on the overall school system in need of restructuring and federal, state and local funding.
Subject Area
School administration
Recommended Citation
Crown, Norma, "The New York City Join-A-School Partnership Program: Impacts, outcomes, implications. A case study" (1990). ETD Collection for Fordham University. AAI9109252.
https://research.library.fordham.edu/dissertations/AAI9109252
