You Can't Be What You Can't See presents a rare longitudinal account of the benefits of a high-quality, out-of-school program on the life trajectories of hundreds of poor, African American youth who grew up in Chicago's notorious Cabrini-Green housing project in the 1980s and early '90s. The result of a five-year research project by Stanford scholar Milbrey W. McLaughlin, the book documents what happened to more than 700 Cabrini-Green youth two decades after they attended the Community Youth Creative Learning Experience (CYCLE), a comprehensive after-school program offering tutoring, enrichment, scholarships, summer camps, and more. Through data collection, and in-depth interviews with participants and staff, she finds that almost all had graduated high school and escaped poverty, and so had their children. McLaughlin describes the design principles as well as the core features of the program that participants say were key to their success: mentoring, exposure to activities and resources beyond their neighborhood, and a culture of belonging in which staff committed to "never give up on a kid." The recollections and accomplishments of CYCLE alums, McLaughlin argues, challenge current assumptions about the enduring effects of poverty and highlight the power of opportunity "to imagine and take a different path." You Can't Be What You Can't See offers lessons for policy makers, educators, community activists, funders, and others interested in learning what makes a youth organization effective for low-income, marginalized children.

This pathbreaking book examines the strategies, successes, and challenges of youth advocacy organizations, highlighting the importance of local contexts for these efforts. Working between social movements and the political establishment, these organizations occupy a special niche in American politics and civil society. They use their position to change local agendas for youth and public perceptions of youth, and work to strengthen local community support systems.
"Between Movement and Establishment" describes how youth advocacy organizations affect change in a fragmented urban policy environment. It considers the different constituencies that organizations target, including public officials and policies, specific service sectors, and community members, and looks at the multiple tactics advocates employ to advance their reform agendas, such as political campaigns, accountability measures, building civic capacity, research, and policy formation. This work further examines the importance of historical, organizational, and political contexts in explaining the strategies, actions, and consequences of advocacy organizations' efforts at the local level, bringing to light what is effective and why.

This pathbreaking book examines the strategies, successes, and challenges of youth advocacy organizations, highlighting the importance of local contexts for these efforts. Working between social movements and the political establishment, these organizations occupy a special niche in American politics and civil society. They use their position to change local agendas for youth and public perceptions of youth, and work to strengthen local community support systems.
"Between Movement and Establishment" describes how youth advocacy organizations affect change in a fragmented urban policy environment. It considers the different constituencies that organizations target, including public officials and policies, specific service sectors, and community members, and looks at the multiple tactics advocates employ to advance their reform agendas, such as political campaigns, accountability measures, building civic capacity, research, and policy formation. This work further examines the importance of historical, organizational, and political contexts in explaining the strategies, actions, and consequences of advocacy organizations' efforts at the local level, bringing to light what is effective and why.

American high schools have never been under more pressure to reform: student populations are more diverse than ever, resources are limited, and teachers are expected to teach to high standards for all students. While many reformers look for change at the state or district level, the authors here argue that the most local contexts--schools, departments, and communities--matter the most to how well teachers perform in the classroom and how satisfied they are professionally. Their findings--based on one of the most extensive research projects ever done on secondary teaching--show that departmental cultures play a crucial role in classroom settings and expectations. In the same school, for example, social studies teachers described their students as "apathetic and unwilling to work," while English teachers described the same students as "bright, interesting, and energetic."
With wide-ranging implications for educational practice and policy, this unprecedented look into teacher communities is essential reading for educators, administrators, and all those concerned with U. S. High Schools.

You Can't Be What You Can't See presents a rare longitudinal account of the benefits of a high-quality, out-of-school program on the life trajectories of hundreds of poor, African American youth who grew up in Chicago's notorious Cabrini-Green housing project in the 1980s and early '90s. The result of a five-year research project by Stanford scholar Milbrey W. McLaughlin, the book documents what happened to more than 700 Cabrini-Green youth two decades after they attended the Community Youth Creative Learning Experience (CYCLE), a comprehensive after-school program offering tutoring, enrichment, scholarships, summer camps, and more. Through data collection, and in-depth interviews with participants and staff, she finds that almost all had graduated high school and escaped poverty, and so had their children. McLaughlin describes the design principles as well as the core features of the program that participants say were key to their success: mentoring, exposure to activities and resources beyond their neighborhood, and a culture of belonging in which staff committed to "never give up on a kid." The recollections and accomplishments of CYCLE alums, McLaughlin argues, challenge current assumptions about the enduring effects of poverty and highlight the power of opportunity "to imagine and take a different path." You Can't Be What You Can't See offers lessons for policy makers, educators, community activists, funders, and others interested in learning what makes a youth organization effective for low-income, marginalized children.