Florida Youth ChalleNGe Academy

An Evidence-Based Practice

Description

In 1993, the National Guard founded the Youth ChalleNGe Program to give troubled youth the opportunity to turn their lives around. A voluntary, preventive program, the National Guard Youth ChalleNGe Program (NGYCP) helps young people improve their life skills, education levels and
employment potential. Sixteen- to 18-year-old male and female high school dropouts are eligible to apply for the 17-month program, which includes a five-month residential phase followed by a 12-month mentoring phase.

The Florida Youth ChalleNGe Academy is one of the few Youth ChallenGE Programs that are also state-certified high schools. Led by professionals who emphasize structure, discipline, education and life skills, this program provides high school dropouts the chance to become productive and accomplished in their chosen field.

Goal / Mission

The goal of the program is to intervene in the lives of high-school dropouts and provide them with the values, life skills, education, and self-discipline necessary to succeed.

Results / Accomplishments

The Florida Youth ChalleNGe Academy, a state-wide program, has graduated 2,420 Corpsmembers since its inception. National Guard Bureau is responsible for management and oversight of the 33 ChalleNGe programs that have graduated more than 100,000 Corpsmembers to date.

An evaluation study of the national program interviewed cadets three years after they completed the program and compared them with a control group. The study found that 72% of those in the ChalleNGe program had received their GEDs compared with only 56% of the control group, a difference significant at p<0.0001. In addition, 58% of the cadets were working while only 51% of the controls were working (p<0.015).

About this Promising Practice

Organization(s)
National Guard Youth Foundation
Primary Contact
Florida Youth ChalleNGe Academy
5629 State Road 16 West
Starke, FL 32091
Building 3800
1-866-276-9304
admissions@flyca.info
http://www.floridayouthchallengeacademy.org/
Topics
Education / Student Performance K-12
Health / Wellness & Lifestyle
Health / Adolescent Health
Organization(s)
National Guard Youth Foundation
Date of implementation
2000
Geographic Type
Rural
Location
Florida
For more details
http://www.floridayouthchallengeacademy.org/
Target Audience
Teens
Submitted By
Florida Youth ChalleNGe Academy

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Related Content for: Florida Youth ChalleNGe Academy

An Evidence-Based Practice meets the following HCI criteria:

  1. The program description includes at a minimum: the sponsoring organization, program goals, program implementation steps, and outcomes that have demonstrated program success in achieving the program goal in one or more localities.
  2. The results from an evaluation of the program include quantitative measures showing improvement in the outcome(s) of interest after the implementation of the program (i.e. increase in smoking cessation, not just the delivery of a smoking cessation program). The outcome measure(s) is/are compared at relevant time periods before and after the intervention or program implementation. Alternatively, the evaluation study compares the outcome(s) between an intervention group and an appropriate control group.
  3. The study is of peer-review quality and presents numbers in a scientific manner; measurements of precision and reliability are included (e.g. confidence intervals, standard errors), results from statistical tests show a significant difference or change in the outcome measure(s), and relevant point estimates and p-values are presented. Note: if the results from an evaluation of a program are presented in a scientific manner and the outcome measure is improved compared to the baseline measurement or the control group but the difference is not statistically significant, the practice is classified as effective and not evidence-based.