• 137-01 - Early Prevention Education and Intervention Efforts to Address Non-academic Concerns
  Presented by: Jacqueline Kirby-Wilkins
• 137-02 - Is All Parental Non-involvement Equal? Barriers to Parental Involvement and Their Relationship to Latino Academic Achievement
  Presented by: Jamie Dowdy, Ronald Cox, Martha Zapata Roblyer, Andrew Behnke
• 137-03 - Helping Middle School Youth Stay in School Using Multiple Intervention Strategies
  Presented by: Michelle Krehbiel, Maria de Guzman, Yan Xia
• 137-04 - Parental Involvement and Parent-Teacher Associations: A Hierarchical Linear Modeling. Presented by: Mellissa Gordon, Preston Brown

Abstracts

Early Prevention Education and Intervention Efforts to Address Non-academic Concerns

Presented by: Jacqueline Kirby-Wilkins

There is an alarming gap between the non-academic (i.e., social/emotional, behavioral, mental health) needs of children and available school services. A continuum of interventions is needed to facilitate healthy socioemotional development, prevent or minimize psychosocial and mental health problems, and provide coordinated treatment of severe/chronic problems for children. This study evaluates the effectiveness of a program aimed at improving access to prevention and intervention services and to reduce disciplinary incidents by providing a comprehensive wrap-around, three-tiered approach (i.e., universal education/prevention programming, intermediate, intensive intervention) to meet students’ non-academic needs. Preliminary findings show that this innovative approach holds great potential. 

Is All Parental Non-involvement Equal? Barriers to Parental Involvement and Their Relationship to Latino Academic Achievement

Presented by: Jamie Dowdy, Ronald Cox, Martha Zapata Roblyer, Andrew Behnke

Parental involvement is a robust predictor of academic achievement. However, little is known about differences between reasons for non-involvement and its impact on school achievement among youth. This study examines the association between adolescent perceptions of six different reasons for parental non-involvement in school and student GPA in a sample of 343 Latino youth. Lack of transportation and feeling unwelcomed at school were negatively associated with GPA and work schedule difficulties as a reason for non-involvement were associated with increases in GPA. Language barriers, lack of childcare, and lack of interest were not significantly associated with GPA. Implications are discussed.

Helping Middle School Youth Stay in School Using Multiple Intervention Strategies

Presented by: Michelle Krehbiel, Maria de Guzman, Yan Xia

Family involvement is a critical factor in helping middle school youth achieve academic success.  Unfortunately, many minority and poor youth fail to graduate from high school and pursue post-secondary education.  To address this issue the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension obtained a federally funded grant to implement an intense multiple intervention strategy program targeting minority and low-income families.    The overall goal of the project is to strengthen families by providing parent education, improving parent-child relationships, and empower youth and parent to help prepare for post-secondary education.  Early program evaluation results indicate increased positive parenting skills and increased knowledge about post-secondary opportunities.

Parental Involvement and Parent-Teacher Associations: A Hierarchical Linear Modeling.

Presented by: Mellissa Gordon, Preston Brown

Parental involvement has substantiated vast amounts of research as it relates to adolescent academic achievement. However, little research has addressed the association between parental involvement at the individual level and factors at the school level, such as school level parents-related organizations. Based on theory and previousresearch, the current study utilizes a hierarchical linear modeling approach to test the association between individual level parental involvement, school organization, and adolescent academic achievement. Empirical support of findings can further improve academic practices, as findings may lead to a better understanding of the relationship between parental involvement and school level organizations.