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Your Impact
Destination: Graduation
In 2005, United Way launched Destination: Graduation, an educational initiative designed to improve high school graduation rates and the pursuit of advanced education. After a two years of successful programming in Dallas, the project recently expanded to Collin County.
Like Born Learning, Destination: Graduation is one of more than 80 programs currently delivered by United Way and community partners to help children and youth achieve their potential. Though both educational initiatives are targeted to specific schools, they benefit the entire community because they promote school achievement, which in turn leads to a more qualified work force and a community of strong and successful families.
The need for programs like Destination: Graduation is demonstrated by some alarming statistics regarding high school performance, including the fact that some studies estimate that more than 40 percent of Dallas ISD freshmen don't graduate with their classmates. Learn more.
Destination: Graduation employs a customized-by-school strategy to achieve program goals, focusing on:
College preparation and SAT training
Parental involvement
Mentoring and counseling
Results to date:
Destination: Graduation students at Samuell High School advanced to the next grade level at a rate that was 19 percent higher than that of their peers during the project's pilot year. During the 2006-07 school year, this promotion rate increased to 23 percent!
At the end of the 2006-07 year:
620 students had completed the Princeton Review Course
Nearly 650 parents graduated from a parental education program
Nearly 100 students were successfully paired with adult mentors
"The objectives of Destination: Graduation fit in perfectly with those of Dallas Achieves, the initiative to make Dallas ISD the best urban school district in the nation. It is a great honor to have the opportunity to partner with United Way since it takes the collective effort of educators working in partnership with business and community leaders to make students successful. "
Dr. Michael Hinojosa, Superintendent, Dallas ISD
"Plano ISD is pleased to collaborate with United Way on Destination: Graduation. This program, to be offered at Williams High School and Plano East Senior High School, will utilize numerous resources throughout Collin County to support students who need more help in reaching their goal of high school graduation. "
Dr. Doug Otto, Superintendent, Plano ISD
To learn more about how you and your organization can get involved with Destination: Graduation, please contact Gina Carrillo at
gcarrillo@unitedwaydallas.org or 214-978-2007.
