Mentoring
Helping Students Stay in School Through Check & Connect
Check & Connect is a 30-year-old, evidence-based program that has successfully helped thousands of students stay in school and make it to graduation. The Student Advocacy Center is proud to provide this long-term program, one of only a few in Michigan, connecting our experienced and caring mentors with students.
Referrals are provided by our partner schools and community agencies. To learn more, please email tina@studentadvocacycenter.org.
Finding School Success with Real Support
Check & Connect is available by referral only, through our partnership with Washtenaw Community Mental Health, Ypsilanti Community Schools, Lincoln Consolidated Schools, the Washtenaw County Trial Court, Covenant House Academy- Southwest. Limited spots are available.We support students in Detroit Public Schools (Cody High School) through our youth organizing program Youth Action Michigan. The students we work with are struggling with behavior in school, absenteeism and/or poor grades—all warning signs that they may disengage and drop out without help.
The program creates strong relationships between mentors and students, with consistent weekly connects for at least two years. Check & Connect is the leading program that the U.S. Department of Education has found to have positive effects on helping students who are at risk of dropping out stay in school.
Contact Tina Jurries, tina at studentadvocacycenter.org, if you have questions. Learn more about the Check & Connect model at the University of Minnesota’s Institute on Community Integration.
The Power of Check & Connect
71%
Increased or maintained school attendance
90%
Decreased school discipline referrals
76%
Increased overall grade average or maintaining passing grades
“Before I started working with my mentor and the Student Advocacy Center, I wasn’t attending school. Now that I have you guys, I’m attending school more often. I’ve also been on the honor roll back to back. I feel that I’m making more accomplishments and achieving more goals. I have conversations with my mentor, and he helps me see the bigger picture in life, which helps me make key decisions in my life. At first I felt like I couldn’t come to school and be a good student, but now I’m actually doing it. Thank you for helping me be a better me.”
“Jessie,” 9th grader
Documentary:You Can’t Give Up
In America, one out of every three black men is likely to be imprisoned. This is the story of one young man who tried to avoid that fate — and the mentor who helped him.
Education: A Right Worth Investing In
We rely on your help to provide students with the support they need to stay in school, find hope and grow. Invest in the lives of youth today — every dollar you invest in producing a high school graduate has a return of $1.45 - $3.55.