Intervention Summary
Child Advancement Project (CAP)
The Child Advancement Project (CAP) is a school-based mentoring program that matches community volunteers with students in kindergarten through 12th grade. Each volunteer mentor works one-on-one with his or her student mentee for 1 hour each week throughout the school year to increase the student's academic and social competency and to provide opportunities for academic challenge; these efforts are intended to complement the efforts of the student's teachers and family. Mentors provide students with support and encouragement, help them discover and build on their individual strengths, and affirm students' ability to shape their own futures. At the primary school level, the mentor and student typically engage in activities such as playing a board game, reading a book, and working on homework or school projects. At the secondary school level, mentors and students typically complete school work, visit educational Web sites pertaining to the school subjects that interest the student, work on brain teasers and puzzles, and discuss the student's options after high school. Mentoring sessions are conducted on school grounds, during school hours over the course of the school year. Students are nominated for participation in CAP by their teachers, parents, or other school staff, or they can nominate themselves. A student can be nominated for any of the following reasons: the student is in need of additional academic, social, and/or emotional support; the student is struggling with a stressful family situation; the student is not currently receiving other special services from the school district; and/or the student would benefit from additional academic enrichment or challenge. To help prevent stigmatization, CAP is open to any student, regardless of his or her academic or socioeconomic situation. Upon entering the program, the student is matched with a mentor on the basis of the student's needs and interests as well as the mentor's strengths and interests. No special qualifications are needed to become a mentor, but new mentors must pass a screening process and attend two trainings, which are facilitated by an on-site program coordinator. The program coordinator also provides guidance and resources to mentors throughout the program. Program coordinators are required to have a bachelor's degree in social services or education and must attend implementation training.
The documents below were reviewed for Quality of Research. The research point of
contact can provide information regarding the studies reviewed and the availability
of additional materials, including those from more recent studies that may have been conducted. Gordon, J., Downey, J., & Bangert, A. Comprehensive evaluation report on the Child Advancement Project (CAP): A school-based mentoring program--Evaluation report. Unpublished manuscript. Karcher, M. J. Measuring connectedness across the adolescent's social ecology: Five validation studies. Poster presented at the 109th American Psychological Association Conference, San Francisco, CA.
The following populations were identified in the studies reviewed for Quality of
Research.
External reviewers independently evaluate the Quality of Research for an intervention's
reported results using six criteria:
For more information about these criteria and the meaning of the ratings, see Quality of Research.
The rates of unexcused school absences and discipline referrals were drawn from official school district records. The MAC subscales have good reliability and validity. Measures were used to enhance and assess the fidelity of program implementation. Although data from school district records were used, no steps were taken to verify the accuracy of the records for unexcused school absences and discipline referrals. Although fidelity measures were used, no information was reported regarding their effectiveness. Attrition was moderately high in three of the five grade levels. No data or analytical findings were reported to compare those who dropped out of the study and those who remained. The study design and analytical procedures did not include steps to control for potential confounding factors. Participants' pre- and posttest measures were not matched, which introduced a potential bias.
The materials below were reviewed for Readiness for Dissemination. The implementation
point of contact can provide information regarding implementation of the intervention
and the availability of additional, updated, or new materials. CAP brochures CAP evaluation materials CAP process guide materials Materials for supervision of mentors New mentor school packets Thrive. CAP program policy manual. Bozeman, MT: Author. Thrive. Nuts and bolts: CAP and Bozeman School District policies [PowerPoint slides]. Bozeman, MT: Author.
External reviewers independently evaluate the intervention's Readiness for Dissemination
using three criteria: For more information about these criteria and the meaning of the ratings, see Readiness for Dissemination.
The program policy manual and process guide materials clearly describe program policies, timelines, recruitment, and screening of mentors. They also provide clear guidelines on how volunteer mentors should interact with student mentees. The program Web site provides many resources that parents of students in the program can use with their families at home. The program design includes a program coordinator, who supports the mentoring process. Mentors are required to attend two trainings facilitated by the local program coordinator. Pre- and postimplementation assessments for teachers, mentors, students, and parents are available. Evaluation forms are included for teachers' use in assessing the program and for mentors' use in assessing the training. The developer provides support for interpreting and using data from the program evaluation forms. Written preimplementation guidance for new sites, including staffing requirements, is limited. The training materials do not describe how program coordinators are trained in the model. Although technical assistance is available, the content of this support is unclear. Several forms are provided for use in evaluating mentors; however, there is little guidance on the use of these forms, and discussion is limited on how the collected data can be used for program improvement. It is not clear how the program coordinators are monitored to ensure program fidelity.
The cost information below was provided by the developer. Although this cost information
may have been updated by the developer since the time of review, it may not reflect
the current costs or availability of items (including newly developed or discontinued
items). The implementation point of contact can provide current information and
discuss implementation requirements. Descriptive Information
Areas of Interest
Mental health promotion
Outcomes
1: Unexcused school absences
2: Discipline referrals
3: Social connectedness
Outcome Categories
Education
Social functioning
Ages
6-12 (Childhood)
13-17 (Adolescent)
Genders
Male
Female
Races/Ethnicities
Race/ethnicity unspecified
Settings
School
Geographic Locations
Rural and/or frontier
Implementation History
Thrive (a community-based organization) collaborated with Bozeman Public Schools to develop and pilot CAP in two elementary schools in Bozeman, Montana, matching 35 students with mentors. CAP was implemented in all 10 Bozeman Public Schools, and 557 students in kindergarten through 12th grade were matched with mentors. CAP was introduced in the Big Sky School District. More than 8,000 students have participated in the program.
NIH Funding/CER Studies
Partially/fully funded by National Institutes of Health: No
Evaluated in comparative effectiveness research studies: No
Adaptations
No population- or culture-specific adaptations of the intervention were identified by the developer.
Adverse Effects
No adverse effects, concerns, or unintended consequences were identified by the developer.
IOM Prevention Categories
Universal
Selective
Documents Reviewed
Study 1
Supplementary Materials
Outcomes
Outcome 1: Unexcused school absences
Description of Measures
Unexcused school absences for each of 2 school years were abstracted from school district records for 7th- through 10th-grade students. (Records for 6th-grade students were not available for comparison.)
Key Findings
Data from 7th- through 10th-grade students who participated in CAP (intervention group) were compared with data from a matched sample of students who did not participate in CAP (control group). Over each of 2 school years, students in the intervention group had fewer unexcused absences than students in the control group. These differences were associated with medium effect sizes (Cohen's d = 0.79 and 0.60, respectively).
Studies Measuring Outcome
Study 1
Study Designs
Quasi-experimental
Quality of Research Rating
2.1
(0.0-4.0 scale)
Outcome 2: Discipline referrals
Description of Measures
Discipline referrals for each of 2 school years were abstracted from school district records for 7th- through 10th-grade students. (Records for 6th-grade students were not available for comparison.)
Key Findings
Data from 7th- through 10th-grade students who participated in CAP (intervention group) were compared with data from a matched sample of students who did not participate in CAP (control group). Over each of 2 school years, students in the intervention group had fewer discipline referrals than students in the control group. These differences were associated with large effect sizes (Cohen's d = 1.43 and 1.84, respectively).
Studies Measuring Outcome
Study 1
Study Designs
Quasi-experimental
Quality of Research Rating
2.1
(0.0-4.0 scale)
Outcome 3: Social connectedness
Description of Measures
Social connectedness was assessed using the Hemingway: Measure of Adolescent Connectedness Survey (adolescent version 5.5, grades 6-12) (MAC). The MAC is a 40-item self-report survey that measures respondents' degree of caring for and involvement in specific relationships, contexts, and activities across 10 subscales: connectedness to neighborhood, connectedness to friends, connectedness to parents, connectedness to siblings, connectedness to school, connectedness to peers, connectedness to teachers, connectedness to reading, self-in-the-present, and self-in-the-future. Using a 5-point scale ranging from 1 (not at all true) to 5 (very true), students rated each item. Assessments were conducted.
Key Findings
Data from 6th- through 10th-grade students who participated in CAP (intervention group) were compared with data from a matched sample of students who did not participate in CAP (control group). Findings at posttest included the following:
Studies Measuring Outcome
Study 1
Study Designs
Quasi-experimental
Quality of Research Rating
2.5
(0.0-4.0 scale)
Study Populations
Study
Age
Gender
Race/Ethnicity
Study 1
6-12 (Childhood)
13-17 (Adolescent)
51.8% Male
46.8% Female
100% Race/ethnicity unspecified
Quality of Research Ratings by Criteria (0.0-4.0 scale)
Outcome
Reliability
of Measures
Validity
of Measures
Fidelity
Missing
Data/Attrition
Confounding
Variables
Data
Analysis
Overall
Rating
1: Unexcused school absences
2.0
2.8
2.0
1.5
1.5
2.8
2.1
2: Discipline referrals
2.0
2.8
2.0
1.5
1.5
2.8
2.1
3: Social connectedness
3.3
3.8
2.0
1.5
2.0
2.8
2.5
Study Strengths
Study Weaknesses
Materials Reviewed
Readiness for Dissemination Ratings by Criteria (0.0-4.0 scale)
Implementation
Materials
Training and Support
Resources
Quality Assurance
Procedures
Overall
Rating
2.8
2.8
2.3
2.6
Dissemination Strengths
Dissemination Weaknesses
Item Description
Cost
Required by Developer
CAP Program Policy Manual
Free
Yes
CAP Process Guide
Free
Yes
2-day, on-site implementation training for program coordinators
$2,500 for up to 10 participants, plus travel expenses for 2 trainers
Yes (one implementation training option is required)
2-day, off-site implementation training for program coordinators at the Thrive facility in Bozeman, MT
$2,500 for up to 10 participants
Yes (one implementation training option is required)
1-day, on-site visit
$1,000 plus travel expenses
Yes
Phone-based technical assistance
Free for the first 10 hours; $100 per hour for all subsequent hours
No
2 off-site postimplementation trainings (2 hours each) at the Thrive facility in Bozeman, MT
$200 each for up to 10 participants
Yes (one postimplementation training option is required)
2 postimplementation conference call trainings (2 hours each)
$200 each
Yes (one postimplementation training option is required)
Evaluation forms
Free
Yes
Phone- or email-based evaluation support
Varies depending on site needs
No
Site implementation assessment
Free
Yes
Site fidelity assessment
Free
Yes