Response soars for supplemental educational services option in Indianapolis.

Ashby, Nicole

The after-school tutoring program in Indianapolis could not have come at a better time for the Jessie family. Jodi Jessie said her children had been struggling with their schoolwork, so she had been looking into getting their teachers to work with them for maybe an afternoon or two. "And then they came around with this tutoring program, which they can do Monday through Thursday," she said. "That was even better. So I just went ahead and put them in it."

Provided free of charge, it was a huge savings for the mother of eight whose four children in grades 1-4 qualified for the service. Last September, after their school did not meet the state's adequate yearly progress (AYP) goals for a third consecutive year, they became eligible to either receive free tutoring or transfer to another school.

For Jessie, it was a no-brainer: "My kids have been going there since kindergarten. I went there. My husband went there. And the school is great. The teachers are awesome. The principal is amazing. So it never crossed my mind to take them out of that school."

Introduced by the No Child Left Behind Act, the extra academic help is an effort to help those who need it most: students from low-income families in consistently low-performing schools. The law requires that school districts offer supplemental educational services (SES) to students who: 1) qualify for free or reduced-price lunches; and 2) attend schools receiving Title I funds (federal dollars for high-poverty schools) that have been identified as "in need of improvement" for a second year for failing to meet AYP for three straight years. The school district covers the cost; parents select the tutoring organization they feel is best for their child.

"It really empowers parents," said Carrie Reinking, who coordinates the SES program for Indianapolis Public Schools.

This school year, with the support of federal funding, Indianapolis will spend more than $4 million on supplemental educational services to help several thousand students in grades K-8 improve their knowledge and skills in core subjects while their schools undergo improvements. Approximately $1,500 has been allotted per student to pay for tutoring sessions that vary in number based on SES providers' hourly rates.

Providers, which may include high-performing public and private schools as well as community and faith-based organizations, are approved and monitored by states. At the local level, school districts supply parents of eligible children with a list of qualified providers serving the area, from which they may make their selection. Then the districts, which broker the contract and manage all logistics, arrange a meeting with the parent, provider and a district staff member to discuss specific goals for the child, set up a schedule for services, and decide how the child's progress will be measured.

According to recent records, Indianapolis has one of the highest participation rates in the country, with 64 percent of the 3,500 eligible students signing up for tutoring in the 2005-06 school year. (The 2006-07 rate will not be available until the final audit in August.) As the largest school system in the state, Indianapolis Public Schools facilitates services for 16 eligible schools, a number that has quadrupled since the program's start in 2002.

Several factors account for the large enrollment: an aggressive outreach effort that involves notifying parents at the beginning of the school year about their child's eligibility; regular provider fairs that allow tutoring companies to describe the scope of their services; and open houses and other parent events year-round that give Reinking and fellow coordinator Sylvia Myles a continuous platform to speak about the program's benefits.

However, it's not just about getting the word out, added Reinking. In one area where participation was low, she said, "They wanted to be reassured by a voice or a face to say, 'Yes, this is something we feel is valuable for your child. Yes, it is going to be after school, right there in your child's own school. And yes, you can have faith that your child's going to be safe and secure in that environment.'"

Scheduling the tutoring at a convenient location, particularly at the child's school, has been the biggest draw, explained Myles. "The parents do not have to worry about transporting their children to another site. They're at a safe location; they're at their own home school," she said. Other sites include public libraries, community centers and, in some cases, children's homes.

Another bonus for parents is that many of the tutors hired are actually their children's classroom teachers. They are part of a wide range of talent, which also includes retired educators, college students and career professionals, providing one-on-one instruction or small-group tutoring.

Yet, as the market grows--state-approved tutoring companies in Indianapolis have doubled to 32 from just last year--choosing the right provider can feel like a daunting task for parents. "My take has always been pretty simple," said one provider. "If you put the kids first ... the word will spread."

Overall, it has been Indianapolis' open enrollment policy that has allowed more families to take advantage of the program. Instead of restricting enrollment to, for example, one month, students can register anytime during the school year, which is especially convenient for middle school students, who often are involved in extracurricular activities, such as football or band practice, that may compete with tutoring sessions. After the tutoring, transportation is provided at no cost to seventh- and eighth-graders.

Also, as another SES provider points out, for children who already have spent eight hours a day in a classroom, it's important to provide a variety of academically enriching activities, such as a board game to hone math skills: "That keeps the kids interested in coming to the after-school program every day."

A former teacher for more than 25 years, Reinking considers the additional instruction provided through the SES program "a valuable extension of ... the hard work we're doing with our students during the day," while it helps to bring more community partners on board to support schools. Among other measures of success, she points to the high ratings on parent satisfaction surveys, though she admits there is still more work to do in improving student achievement.

But Jodi Jessie, who said she has seen a difference in her children's attitudes toward learning following the tutoring sessions, believes the outcomes are more than numerical. "Being in the neighborhood that we are in, there are a lot of kids who go home to nothing," she said. "And when they've got a teacher there who's going to stay with them and pay attention to them--that means a lot to them."

Indianapolis Public Schools

* Grade Span: K-12

* Locale: Urban

* Total Students: 36,957

* Race/Ethnicity Enrollment: 58% African American, 25% white, 12% Hispanic, 4% multiracial, 0.5% Asian, 0.5% American Indian

* Free and Reduced-Price Lunch Eligible: 83%

* English Language Learners: 9%

* Special Education Students: 17%

* Percentage Proficient: In reading, 50%; in math, 51% (based on third- through 10th-graders assessed on the 2006 state exam)

* Interesting Fact: Indianapolis has one of the country's highest participation rates for supplemental educational services, with 64 percent of the 3,500 eligible students signing up for tutoring in 2005-06.