In Washington, DC, only 69 percent of public school students graduate from high school on time. Many factors influence that low rate. One of the most important ones is whether the people around the students expect them to succeed. So, for the past 40 years, a DC organization has stepped in to give around 10,000 students the support and positive environment they need to thrive. This organization, called Higher Achievement, provides students a welcoming space, help with classwork, and caring mentors. More than 95 percent of students who complete Higher Achievement graduate from high school on time. Katherine Roboff is the group’s executive director in the DC area. She gives several reasons for the group’s success. One is timing. Higher Achievement does not work with students who are already in high school. It works with students in middle school. They start Higher Achievement at fifth or sixth grade in the U.S., that is usually ages 11 or 12. Roboff says research shows that if students are doing well academically in eighth gradearound age 13they will have a greater chance of graduating from high school and going to college. In other words, what happens in middle school has a huge impact. The years between ages 10 and 13 may affect a student’s future more than anything that happens academically in high school.
