In the News
Telemundo: Rescatando a la juventud
Thursday May 3rd 2012
Telemundo in Los Angeles takes a look at how the Sunburst Youth ChalleNGe Academy in Los Alamitos, California is rescuing the area's at-risk youth.
Click here to watch the report: http://www.telemundo52.com/noticias/Rescatando-la-juventud-149932005.h
U.S. Rep. David McKinley Announces Congressional Youth ChalleNGe Caucus
Friday March 30th 2012
The CYCC, a bipartisan effort, is Co-Chaired by McKinley, along with Representatives Grace F. Napolitano, Lois Capps, and Denny Rehberg. The CYCC will work to expand and promote awareness about the Youth Challenge Program.
Youth ChalleNGe gives America’s high school dropouts and at-risk boys and girls, ages 16 – 18, a second chance to get on the road to success.
Currently, West Virginia’s Youth ChalleNGe Program, the Mountaineer ChalleNGe Academy, is conducted at Camp Dawson in Preston County through the West Virginia National Guard.
"We must not let a mistake like dropping out of high school haunt our young people for the rest of their lives," said McKinley. “The staff at the Mountaineer ChalleNGe Academy do amazing work. This program makes a positive, life-changing difference in the lives of several hundred young West Virginians each year.”
RAND Cost-Benefit Analysis Finds 166% Return on Investment
Wednesday March 28th 2012
Data released today by the RAND Corporation proves the National Guard Youth ChalleNGe Program is a wise use of taxpayer funds. The RAND Corporation cost-benefit analysis of the program - started in 1993 to turn around the lives of high school dropouts - shows every dollar spent on the program results in a return of $2.66, or yields a 166 percent return on investment.
According to the RAND cost-benefit analysis, the estimated return on investment in the Youth ChalleNGe Program is “substantially above that for many other rigorously evaluated social programs that target disadvantaged youth.” The cost-benefit analysis also concluded that “continued operation of existing ChalleNGe sites will yield substantial net benefits to program participants and society at large.” The full report can be found here: http://www.rand.org/pubs/technical_reports/TR1193.html
Washington Scene: NGYF ChalleNGe Champions Gala
Friday March 23rd 2012
The National Guard Youth Foundation Challenge Champions Gala took place Tuesday at the JW Marriott. The event focused on the importance of strengthening public-private partnerships to bolster the effort to re-engage out-of-school youth.
Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.), Rep. Gregg Harper (R-Miss.) and his son Livingston, as well as race car drivers Dale Ernhardt, Jr. and J.R. Hildebrand, in addition to WWE star Kofi Kingston all were spotted at the event.
The Youth Challenge Program is a voluntary 17-month intervention program that offers teens ages 16 to 18 who have dropped out of school the opportunity to get their diploma or GED. More than 100,000 have graduated from the program.
Augusta Chronicle: Founding director of Fort Gordon Youth Challenge Academy reflects on 12-year tenure
Sunday March 11th 2012
Janet Zimmerman, seen surrounded by the First Platoon Amazons, officially retired March 3 as head of the Fort Gordon program. She started the job in 2000.
It seems a given for a program with that word in its name: the Fort Gordon Youth Challenge Academy.
But the struggles she has met and overcome as the academy’s inaugural director are of a different nature than those faced by the high school students voluntarily coming to Fort Gordon searching for direction and structure.
Shreveport Times: Study shows good return on ChalleNGe
Saturday March 3rd 2012
Good value. Good lessons. Good results. According to a recently released RAND Corp. study, that's what we are getting from taxpayer money spent to fund the National Guard Youth ChalleNGe Program. Offered at no cost to participants, the National Guard Youth ChalleNGe Program began as a 10-state pilot program in 1993 by an act of Congress. In 1998, following a comprehensive evaluation, Congress approved the ChalleNGe program as a permanent program. Since then, the program has grown to include 33 sites in 27 states and Puerto Rico.
"I came to the program because I wanted to change my attitude," said Denetra Harrell, 17, of Alexandria. She had fallen two grades behind at Bolton High School. Indeed, the program offers a new set of opportunities for many of our failing students who are on the verge of dropping out of school or have already done so. Through Youth ChalleNGe, these young people often find a path — other than traditional education — to a better future.
These are young people who could easily find themselves on the fringes of society, living in a world that is marked by crime and poverty. ChalleNGe helps them to step around that obstacle.
FOX News: National Guard Youth ChalleNGe Program Helps High School Students Get Back on Track
Wednesday February 29th 2012
Jon Scott, co-host of FOX News’ “Happening Now” interviews WWE Superstar and spokesperson for the National Guard Youth Foundation Kofi Kingston on the success of the Youth ChalleNGe Program.
The Puerto Rico Youth ChalleNGe Academy Parent Workshop
Saturday February 4th 2012
The Puerto Rico Youth ChalleNGe Academy held its second parent workshop on Saturday, February 4, 2012 at the Juana Diaz John Dewey College facilities; 620 family members attended this activity.
Currently our society presents a lack of values and communication, family unification, a lack of understanding and tolerance of difference between families. For that reason, the program involves parents in the process of changing since many of the situations presented by the cadets proceed from the family nucleus. Thereby, cadets and parents are guided in obtaining the necessary tools for their operating system.
MDRC Study Finds ChalleNGe Produces Lasting Improvements in the Lives of Former Dropouts
Friday December 16th 2011
During a panel on Capitol Hill on July 15, Chief of the National Guard Bureau Gen. Craig McKinley, U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu and Dan Bloom of MDRC, an education and social policy research organization, discussed the results of MDRC's multi-year comprehensive evaluation of the National Guard Youth ChalleNGe Program.
MDRC's report, "Staying on Course: Three-Year Results of the National Guard Youth ChalleNGe Evaluation," illustrates the significant positive impact ChalleNGe has on the educational attainment, employability, and income earning potential of program participants. The study found ChalleNGe participants are:
• 29 percent greater high school diploma or GED attainment
• 86 percent more likely to obtain college credits
• more likely to be employed
• 20 percent higher earnings per year
MDRC's report also cited profound improvements in the self-image, self-confidence and attitudes of those who participate in the Youth ChalleNGe Program.
To read MDRC's executive summary, click here. To watch a video of the panel, click here.
Washington Youth Academy recognized as an Innovative School by state
Bremerton Patriot
Friday December 9th 2011The academy, a quasi-military training and mentoring program, is a division of the National Guard Youth Challenge Program and was announced last month by the state Superintendent of Public Instruction Randy Dorn as an Innovative School. The academy was selected along with 21 other schools in the state for providing instructional programs that are bold, creative and innovative.
