Agenda Item
b. Student Success Agency Agreement Approval (in amount not to exceed $215,000)
Summary: Presented by: Mrs. Denise Revels, Director, Wrap Around Support Services, Division of Equity and Student Empowerment
Request: It is requested that the DeKalb Board of Education approve the contract renewal for the Student Success Agency (SSA) platform for an additional year for an amount not to exceed $215,000.
Why: The Student Success Agency (SSA) partners with schools and districts across the nation to help keep students engaged and enrolled in their learning. Through a proprietary digital mentoring platform, SSA expands access equitably by connecting students to wraparound services and integrated support from their electronic devices. Schools that implemented SSA pre-pandemic saw that student engagement on the SSA platform in their schools remained unchanged since shutdowns in March. Third-party evaluations show students enrolled in SSA receive 10X personalized support and are 3.6X more likely to matriculate into a postsecondary institution.
On the SSA platform, educators can easily collaborate to drive students' academic success and emotional well-being during remote, hybrid, or in-person instruction. Support staff optimize time in their workday, counselors personalize targeted support at scale, and students expand their learning by having equitable access to services.
Details: DeKalb County School District and Student Success Agency will partner to provide students ages 13+ from 24 middle schools and 24 high schools in the district with access to digital wrap-around services. The students from DeKalb County middle and high schools that sign up for the platform will have access to digital mentoring, tutoring, advisement, and support anywhere, anytime.
Financial impact: The cost to purchase the Student Success Agency platform will be paid as follows: $194,480.00 from the general fund charge code 100.1000.530000.03111.7370.9990.8010.090.0000 and $20,520.00 from the GaDOE GRASP Grant charge code: 100.2100.553200.13421.7370.1938.8010.090.2022.
Contact: Mrs. Denise Revels, Director, Wrap Around and Support Services, Division of Equity and Student Empowerment, 678.676.2011
Dr. Shannon Crosslin, Counseling Coordinator III, Division of Equity and Student Empowerment, 678.676.1890
Effective: Upon Board Approval
Status: Approved by General Counsel
Student Success Agency Background/History
Student Success Agency’s mission is to maximize the potential and increase the chances of
success for all students. Since 2012, Student Success Agency (SSA) has been featured in the
following:
● Inc. 5,000 list of top growing organizations (2022)
● National Sponsor of American School Counselor Association (2021)
● Forbes 30 Under 30 recipients for innovation in education (2017)
● Recognition at the White House for innovation in education (2014)
● Release of a Best-Selling Book about the college process (2012)
● TEDx appearance for mentoring innovation (2012)
● Work with 200,000+ students through motivational speaking, mentoring, and camps
A national organization dedicated to closing the equity gap, Student Success Agency (SSA) has
been providing comprehensive digital support services to underserved high schools and
college freshmen for ten years.
In the past three years, our organization has partnered with districts in eighteen states around
the nation to give students unfettered access to digital support services regardless of location.
When working with DeKalb County School District, SSA will combine on-site program
implementation, on-going one-to-one virtual support for students, and 24/7 text-in service for
students to ask questions about college anytime, anywhere.
The Student Success Agency program components include the following:
1.) Program Implementation: SSA’s program student kickoffs ensure student engagement,
saves district partners sign-up hassle, and cultivates student enthusiasm for joining the
program. SSA partners choose from our team of Nationally Recognized Motivational Speakers,
Best-Selling Authors, and Bill Gates Scholars.
2.) Virtual near-peer Agents: SSA’s administrative team works with the nation’s top universities
to recruit, screen, train and lead virtual agents from across the United States. SSA’s mentoring
program is a turn-key for school partners. SSA Agents must successfully complete a five-step
screening process, coupled with one-to-one training.
3.) Staff collaboration software: SSA’s Winbox software documents and time-stamps all
communication between mentors and students, ensures staff members are informed of key
student insights, and allows partner districts to leverage the platform to do more with less.
Program Expectations:
1. Academic Performance Support
a. Third party research of SSA reflects an increase in grade point average for
students who participate in program
b. Students will have access to academic tutoring and study skills training through
SSA
2. College and Career Exploration Planning
a. SSA Agents and students plan for future careers, explore the right college fit, and
connect with experts in career fields
3. Post-Secondary Enrollment and Matriculation Increase
a. Research indicates students in SSA are 3.6X more likely to matriculate to college
b. Our Agents stay in contact with students through high school graduation,summer
melt, and into freshman year of college
4. Premium Safety and Security Standards
a. NAPBS Certified Background Checks
b. 100% of interactions time-stamped, recorded, and reported
c. SSA staffs mental health professionals to ensure student safety
5. Significantly Increase Efficiency and Save Time for Staff
a. SSA's proprietary software grants district partners access to view student key
insights, delegate initiatives to SSA agents, and deliver mass communication to
students
6. Access to Our Network of Top-Tier Agents
a. Our Agents interact with students 8+ times a month to provide a continual
support of students goals
b. Agents have an average GPA of 3.63 in college
c. 32.33% of Agents speak a second language
d. 35.34% of Agents were first generation college students
e. 77.44% of Agents received a scholarship to go to college
f. Agents represent 200+ colleges and universities in the US
7. 5X Increase of Student One-on-one Attention through the College Process
a. Schools and advisors utilize SSA's infrastructure which includes: a team of
motivational speakers, mobile technology, a Best-Selling Book, and teams of
highly motivated advisors to ensure students stay engaged and motivated
through the program.
School Support:
● Seamless integration of SSA aligned with your program, and district/school vision &
goals for student learning and achievement
● Student Kickoffs include an on-site renowned motivational speaker, enrollment, and all
onboarding responsibilities for district-wide partners
● A minimum of one on-site visit per year to ensure students motivation is maintaine
Safety and Security:
Our systems are secure, safe, student tested, and parent approved.
● NAPBS accredited national comprehensive background checks on all Agents.
● 100% of Agents are trained, safety certified, and given access to our Safety
Specialist
● SSA advisors go through a five-step interview process.
● All calls, texts, and emails are time stamped, recorded, and monitored by SSA.
● Our software masks student and advisor real contact information so that no
personal numbers are exchanged.
● SSA employs a Safety Specialist to ensure we comply with school policies
● We ensure all parent consent and liability forms are on file prior to initial student
contact.
Reporting:
● Time stamped texts, calls and emails
● Activity reports distributed on monthly basis
● Electronic imports available via .csv
● Impact report conducted during the year to showcase student progress
● Pre-and post qualitative reports conducted and delivered to staff
Implementation:
We ensure all sign-up activities for your program are implemented and completed. We
combine motivational speaking and technology that allows us to sign-up all students
during an on-site implementation. SSA handles all collection and filing of parent
consent forms.
Cost Structure:
Retail DCSD Price Budget Not to
Exceed
Student Seats $25/student/month $15/student/month $215,000
Additional Waitlisted $25/student/month $15/student/month TBD
Students
SSA will submit monthly invoices based on the number of Opt-In Participants on the
previous month’s report. The invoice total over 12-months will not exceed $215,000.