Northern Kentucky Community Action Commission
717 Madison Avenue
Covington, KY 41011
Lincoln Grant Scholar House
Grant Application:
LGSH solves a significant barrier for student parents: stable and affordable housing. Along with 45 two- and three-bedroom apartments, LGSH provides comprehensive programming to meet immediate needs and to help student parents develop strategies for long-term success. Services include residential housing and rental assistance; food and hygiene assistance through donations; case management and wrap around services including home visits, academic advising and career support, peer support through campus meetings and participant activities, referral to other community resources as appropriate, and completion/monitoring of Needs Assessment/Self-Sufficiency Matrices. LGSH provides academic advising and support with a tailored approach beyond the limited services postsecondary institutions deliver. Each student parent works with a case manager to develop a sense of empowerment with their circumstances and cultivate an understanding of how their past, present, and future decisions impact their lives and the lives of their children.
Goals/Objectives:
LGSH helps to raise parents’ educational levels to positively influence their children’s immediate academic outcomes and educational and career achievements into adulthood. Numerous studies have found that higher levels of education are linked to overall better quality of life, including less behavioral and physical health problems, and lower unemployment rates. Additionally, research suggests that increasing opportunities for parents to gain more education positively impacts the home environment and youth development more than a temporary increase in income. While other intervening factors exist, increasing young parents’ access and success to higher education will have long-lasting positive effects on their children’s educational and life-long outcomes.
The overall goal of the LGSH is to increase the educational attainment of low-income student parents. The short-term goals that must be achieved include LGSH student parents achieving academic and college success within the semester. Within the semester (typically August through December and January through May) goals will include grades that will enable a 2.5 or better semester GPA; retention in classes; and expressed satisfaction in ability to study. Intermediate goals pertain to end of semester goals (December and May) that will include semester and cumulative GPA (2.5 or better); retention between semesters (fall to spring and spring to fall); expressed satisfaction in ability to study; and completion of credential(s) (if applicable). The goals that will be accomplished during the grant project time period of July 2022-June 2022 will vary based on where the residents are along their educational attainment journey. NKCAC expects that each resident will experience positive outcomes that will advance this grant’s area of focus to yield improved academic and future economic outcomes for children.
Grant Evaluation Report:
Overall, the Lincoln-Grant Scholar House program has significantly impacted the lives of many participants, and it has supported low-income, single-parents families in their quest to increase their educational attainment. Through individualized academic and family support services, LGSH has created a stable environment in which parents and children can thrive. The program has worked to remove one of the largest barriers to success–safe, affordable housing– and has provided the necessary support for disadvantaged families to increase their level of education and stability. Programming provided by LGSH allows families to capitalize on the many community resources available, and it lays a strong foundation from which the families continue to grow upon by providing access to mental health and wellness providers, financial literacy coaches, career advancement opportunities, and support in children’s education and health/safety.
Results:
Over the duration of this grant, Lincoln-Grant Scholar House has provided 2,284 activities to residents, pre-residents, and post-residents. LGSH has served 114 participants with 776 individualized family support activities and 785 individualized academic services. LGSH has also provided 86 group workshops addressing academic success, financial literacy, and/or career advancement.
During the grant period, LGSH residents maintained an average 2.87 GPA with 91% of residents remaining enrolled in a post-secondary program and/or graduating from a post-secondary institution.
Using Resident Matrix data, it was determined that 87% of residents reported an improved satisfaction in their studying abilities compared to before becoming residents of LGSH.
Website:
http://www.nkcac.org Amount: $25,000
Date: June 2022
