Evidence Miracle University Works

The Miracle University is based on the principles of the 9th grade CREATE Academy that took place at Grant High School in Sacramento between 2011-2013. Grant High School is a high school in the Del Paso Heights community of Sacramento. It is in a low-income neighborhood where youth face the challenges of poverty and gang violence. Nearly 50% of adults in Del Paso Heights do not have a high school diploma. This is a daunting statistic considering that 80% of all people in prison in America are high school dropouts. The CREATE Academy was a "school within a school" that uplifted hundreds of the most "at promise" students, mostly low-income youth of color, who had a history of academic failure and behavioral challenges. The CREATE Academy (2012-2013) was a group of 150 “at promise” 9th grade youth and 10 teachers at Grant High School in Sacramento. The goal of the CREATE Academy was to significantly raise the engagement and achievement levels for 150 of the lowest achieving incoming 9th grade students at Grant High School. Many of these students had a history of earning 6 Fs on a report card. Some students had ankle monitors and were on probation. The majority of students in the CREATE Academy had experienced years of “high alienation, no support, and being labelled as a failure.” The UC Davis study established that the Handz on Mentors (HOM) and teachers worked collaboratively to help students in the CREATE Academy to “master and own the process of learning as well as understand how to learn and how to be students.” In just 1 year, the 150 students who were deemed as “failures” rose from a history of academic struggle and challenges to success through individually tailored mentoring. There were 3 culturally responsive mentors on campus for all 150 students. Every “Handz on Mentor” was responsible to check in with 50 students each. The average GPA of the incoming class of 150 students was 0.6. By At the end of each semester, the average GPA of the students was over 2.5. The students earned higher California Standards Testing (CST) scores in math, English and science compared to their peers or the other 300 9th grade students. The CREATE Academy students rose to success earning good grades and higher test scores as a result of having weekly academic and wellness "check ins" with a mentor.

The CREATE Academy at Grant High School had documented success that was further captured in a study by the Twin Rivers Unified School District (TRUSD), the Cress Center at UC Davis and also in a documentary, Solving the Inequality, funded by the Sierra Health Foundation in 2013. In 2012 UC Davis CRESS Center published a report that shows how the CREATE 9th Grade Academy was an instructional collaborative learning community with a culture that was based on consistent mentoring, socio-emotional support and accountability. The CREATE Academy teachers were all trained during the summer of 2011 in the CREATE Instructional Model developed by Dr. Raja. All teachers agreed to implement research based instructional practices such as “checking for understanding and an “exit ticket” in all of their classes. While UC Davis recognized the importance of a common instructional foundation, the research institution also revealed that “a very significant part of the CREATE model is the consistent support offered the mentors.” The report goes on to say that the support for the teachers through the mentoring in terms of following up on student accountability are critical elements of the Handz on Mentoring program.” The UC Davis Cress Center also added that the mentor “is a powerful advocate for both the students themselves and the idea that all students will succeed if they are supported and held accountable by the mentor with great care.” The study states that “student performance data on benchmark assessments” showed very strong growth for CREATE students, lending strong support for the effectiveness of Handz on Mentoring. Also, the UC Davis research team interviewed teachers who had students who were part of the CREATE Academy and who received the support of the Handz on Mentors. Teachers according to the UC Davis study concluded that the students who had a mentor had “more motivation, showed more effort, paid better attention in class, were more respectful in class, show greater concern about maintaining higher grades, and were more willing to meet the high expectations set forth by the teachers.” The study by UC Davis on the CREATE Academy concluded the #1 factor of success is the socio-emotional support system for students and teachers through the Handz on Mentoring.

The Western Association of School Accreditation (WASC) added “if the CREATE Academy Model is implemented school-wide, it will surely increase graduation rates and reduce attrition rates.” The Academy model effectively addresses student academic, emotional, and social transitional needs. ” The philosophical approach of the 9th grade Academy is essentially based on personalized relationship building, personalized intervention and mentoring for every single student. The study further states that the focus on “building relationships (every student paired with an advocate who meets their needs) and offering immediate supports” through mentoring when students began struggling was essential to the success of the students in the CREATE Academy.
Moreover, “the Handz on Mentoring model emphasizes matching supports with needs, contracts, bi-weekly check ins/meetings, documenting data, etc. According to the report, “Grant Union HS staff believe that this type of early intervention system identifies students who are “at risk” and provides consistent mentoring and recognition.” The report also mentions that leadership at Grant extends intervention strategies that exist for the 9th grade for ALL students to increase graduation rates and reduce attrition. Finally, a study by the Twin Rivers Unified District (TRUSD) Assessment Director reported in 2012 that CREATE 9th Grade Academy pedagogical practices “produce significantly higher student academic performance” and the “pedagogy should be instituted anywhere it can.” The study by Twin Rivers further concluded that “it would be in the students’ and district’s best interest to ensure this occurs.”

The Handz on Mentors Program took place in October 2019 at Castori Elementary School. Castori is a low-income Title I elementary school in the Del Paso Heights community in Sacramento, CA. Castori Elementary School had a reputation of being a school where there were many discipline issues. The office was always full of students. The Principal could not conduct a meeting with the district without an interruption due to a fight or discipline issues. Teachers would complain that discipline and student behavior was their #1 issue. The Handz on Mentor program was implemented in October 2019. There were 8 mentors on campus every day. The mentors were paid to be there from 8:30-3pm every day. Each mentor had 30-40 mentees to check in with every day. A total of 300 students had a mentor to check in with every mentee every day. By December 2019, the culture of the school had shifted. No longer were there lines of students waiting in the office to see the Principal. Teachers could teach without disruption after disruption taking place. There were far fewer fights taking place on campus. Students and teachers could exist in peace and learning could take place. Furthermore, Castori Elementary School (2019-2020) witnessed a drop in suspensions from 161 to 25 and an increase in attendance, grades, scores, and wellness after implementing the Handz on Mentor program.

A veteran principal who visited Castori Elementary School after the implementation of HOM said, the culture at Castori Elementary has been transformed into a “culture of scholarliness.”
Veteran teacher, Mr. A, commented, “The mentor program has been impactful because it gives us teachers another form of support which will benefit the student.”
Another teacher, Mr. B, commented, I love the program and the concept of HOM. I like how the mentors are in the classroom. We appreciate the support.
A teacher, Ms. C, added, I like how mentors follow up with attendance (call families of absent students).
A mentee student commented, “I care more about school now because I know someone will call my mom if I don’t come to school.”

Oakdale K-8 School is a low-income Title I school of 700 students in North Highlands in North Sacramento. Over 95% of our students and families qualify for free lunch and are below the poverty line. The school is located in a neighborhood that is plagued with unemployment, crime, drugs, sex trafficking, and many other social challenges. Nearly 50% of adults in North Highlands do not have a high school diploma. Dropping out of school has serious individual and social consequences, including hurting employment possibilities, crime, lifetime earnings, and physical health. African American students, especially in urban schools, have disproportionately high dropout rate. The Handz on Mentor (HOM) program was implemented at Oakdale K-8 during the Fall 2021. There were 10 mentors at Oakdale K-8. Every mentor had 40-50 mentees. 500 students in grades 3-8 at Oakdale all had a mentor to check in with them on a daily basis. Before 2021, Oakdale was a school with low test scores, academic participation, and fights on a regular basis. 80% of the Principal’s time was dedicated to dealing with discipline issues. The office was constantly full of students. But after the HOM program was implemented, Oakdale, in just 3 months, experienced a transformation in its school climate, decrease in fights, reduction in suspensions, and an increase in academic engagement.

Mr. A, a veteran teacher at Oakdale commented I feel a huge sense of relief as of late. Students are being held to appropriate expectations, and they are rising to the occasion. As a result of the Handz on Mentor program under the leadership of Principal Dr. Raja, “Students’ behavior is beginning to turn into pride and achievement.”

Another teacher, Ms. B, commented, “Many studies have shown that mentored youth are less likely to skip school, use drugs or alcohol, earn better grades and graduate from school. Because of the Handz on Mentor program, my students had better attitudes toward school, increased social and emotional development, and better self-esteem.”

A teacher, Mr. C, commented: “The fighting between the middle school students dropped sharply since August when I began working for Oakdale Elementary School. Middle School students had their first award assembly and displayed pride in their work. Having the mentor in my classroom enabled me to hold parents accountable for allowing their children to skip school. The parents received a call from the mentor when the student was absent to verify what the reason was. I also was able to remove disruptive students who failed to respond to repeated interventions from the classroom to receive special attention so I was able to teach to the students who were engaged. This connection with the mentors was amazing to see. These mentors had the unique ability to significantly change the behavior of the students who were displaying extreme anger and defiance such as cursing or giving the finger to staff leaving classrooms, destroying property, and regular outbursts of anger. Making these connections created a relationship that transferred into the classroom. One of my students could not sit still in class or go more than 5 minutes without giving me the finger, swearing, singing loudly, or lying down on the floor. He was completely disengaged with anything academic and spent all his energy on trying to get the attention of the class. I spent as much time as I could one- on- one with him which helped a great deal when we were alone, but did not transfer to compliant behavior during class instruction. A mentor took him out of the classroom for a period of time and tutored him one on one. Before this, he was unable to play with other students. After spending time with the mentor, many weeks with her, he found a friend group and game back into my classroom. He was able to sit, listen, and speak respectfully to me even when other students were around. He did leave the school to go to a specialized program for students with his particular diagnosis, but the transformation I witnessed was astounding. This is what the HOM program brought to the school. I understand how some parents may not have appreciated all the phone calls from the mentors for absences and for defiance. However, the students need to be in school and need to be held accountable at home for their behavior at school in order to become successful adults.

This HOM program started by Dr. Raja is the most amazing asset these students could ever hope to have. The days in which my mentor is pulled from my classroom to deal with emergency student situations are not easy. The mentor enables me to focus on those students who are approaching or at grade level by giving attention to those who did not attend school remotely and are many grades behind. She teaches them the lessons I prepare for my English Learner Newcomers who speak Farsi and Pashto. English Learner materials are aimed almost exclusively for Spanish speakers in the United States. Students who use a different alphabet have a much more difficult time learning English. These students would be left behind without the help of the mentor. The neighborhood is riddled with violence and the students have been transformed by his mentor program.”

A teacher, Mr. D, also added: “The mentor program took a while to get off the ground, but I can attest that all of the participants have the students’ best interests at heart. They come with love so that the students can confide in them, but also push the students to be their very best. It has been an amazing dynamic to witness and knowing that the majority of the students have their very own mentor to reach out to is fantastic.”