Raising the Bar: Impacts and Implementation of the New Heights Program for Expectant and Parenting Teens in Washington, dc

Figure V.1. Educational workshops in 2014–2015 
Note: 
Reports of workshops conducted in 2014–2015 in eight of the nine study schools, recorded in the New 
Heights participation database maintained by the DC DHS.
The coordinators’ caseloads and frequency of interaction with students varied by school. 
Coordinators reached out to students regularly but ultimately students decided the extent to 
which they interacted with the program. Caseloads fluctuated but, for most coordinators, 
averaged 10 to 20 students who actively engaged with the program every month. Coordinators 
reported that they saw active participants either daily or multiple times per day.
18
 Depending on 
students’ needs, coordinators saw some 
students on a weekly basis or less frequently. 
The variability in the frequency with which 
they saw students reflects the flexible nature of 
the program. 
Through all aspects of their work, 
coordinators continuously emphasized the 
need for students to learn how to advocate for 
themselves. Coordinators worked with students 
to set achievable targets and define concrete 
pathways to overcoming challenges. The 
weekly workshops offered additional education, specific linkages, and resources for students to 
use in becoming self-sufficient. Coordinators reported that through advocacy, case management 
and referrals, group workshops, and the appropriate use of incentives they helped often 
overwhelmed expectant and parenting students effectively navigate a large school system 
18
Based on staff interviews and a staff survey administered to 11 coordinators. 
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RAISING THE BAR: IMPACTS AND IMPLEMENTATION OF THE NEW HEIGHTS PROGRAM
 
bureaucracy and access community-based resources so that they could stay engaged in school 
and make progress toward completion.