Impact

Community Need

TRM is a safe place where children and youth can complete their homework, receive tutoring services, life skills training and eat a nutritious meal after school. The following statistics assert that “the need” for the educational programs offered at TRM play a crucial role in the West Dallas community.

• Thirty-eight percent of Dallas County ninth graders will fail to graduate in four years. (Beyond ABC)
• Economically disadvantaged students have the highest attrition rate (45%), and Dallas ISD is even higher (51%). (Beyond ABC)
• Texas ranks 1st in the country in number of teen births, and 1st in the number of subsequent teen births (Beyond ABC)
• Children are most likely to be the victim or perpetrator of juvenile crime between the hours of 3-6PM. (Fight Crime: Invest in Kids)
• Juvenile crime triples from 3-6PM (Fight Crime: Invest in Kids)
• There are 97,000 students in Dallas County between the ages of 5 and 13 who are unsupervised during after school hours. (Today’s Children, Tomorrow’s Community)
• There are 6,000 disadvantaged school age children in the West Dallas community. (2000 U.S. Census)

In the state of Texas, 73% of beginning freshmen will graduate from high school within four years, but in West Dallas, only 43% of the children who start high school will graduate. Of these graduates, only 5% of them will be ready for college level work. Of 1,018 schools ranked by Children at Risk, one West Dallas school (L G Pinkston High) ranks last. (Children at Risk, Public School Rankings Report 2010, ww.childrenatrisk.org.) The average family earns well below the median income, and 65% of adult residents lack a high school diploma. In addition, “Double Jeopardy,” a study conducted by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, states that Black and Hispanic children who are not reading proficiently in third grade are about twice as likely as similar white children not to graduate from high school. Because of these statistics, the need for the education focused programs TRM provides is a resource the community cannot do without. TRM has proven results that show that 95% of the students pass to the next grade level, an average of 98% of the students are graduating, and for the past two years, 100% have enrolled in college. TRM is an organization that changes mindsets by building strong relationships, providing quality educational programs, and resources for a brighter tomorrow.

Unfortunately, we are not only fighting against poor educational attainment and poverty, but we are also fighting against gangs, drugs, and other crimes that our youth may see as their only option to survive. For example, the Dallas Morning News wrote an article in November 2010 titled “Arrests Weaken Infamous Gang, police say.” This article told about the arrests made on a gang that had more than 30 drug houses in operation in the small West Dallas community our students live in. Sadly, there are many more that are fully operating today that continually target and recruit our teens and children. By providing the ongoing academic support, encouragement and guidance for students to do well in school, kids will have enough confidence and strength to stay away from a life of crime. And with parents involved and engaged more than ever in their education, whether it’s through volunteering at their school or in the community, their chances for succeeding in school and life is considerably higher than that of a student who doesn’t have these support systems in place.

Programs at TRM are designed specifically as intervention and prevention programs focused on encouraging high school graduation and college enrollment. The programs are designed to attack the high school dropout rates and high risk behaviors such as gang involvement, substance abuse, and teen pregnancy that often result in incarceration or some type of interaction with the juvenile justice system.

TRM’s Impact

The need to intervene and provide targeted education skills and enrichment opportunities is the strategy used to increase academic achievement and success in children and youth.

Parental involvement in a network of support that prioritizes and values education is the critical ingredient to achieving educational goals.

• 90 – 100% of TRM’s seniors graduate from high school.
• Nearly 450 children, youth and families receive educational support each year.
• Over 300 children receive academic assistance and encouragement.
• 95% of children who participate in programs at TRM pass to the next grade level.
• Highly involved parents increase children’s performance levels in school.
• Half of TRM students attend private or magnet schools.
• 80% or more of TRM graduates enroll in post-secondary education.