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Description

The Trekkers program in Rockland, ME is an outdoor-based long-term model program serving young people in mid-coast Maine since 1994. Trekkers supports students from 7th grade until graduation to build social, emotional, and intellectual resiliency through one-to-one peer mentoring, expeditionary learning, community service, and adventure-based education. This study explored the impact of the Trekkers program model and relied upon three data sources: the Holistic Student Assessment (HSA) which is a self-assessment measure of strengths and challenges; attendance and achievement data from the local area high school; and data from the National Student Clearinghouse. The research team compared self-assessment data for 22 Trekkers participants in the 9th/10th grades to a matched pool of 9th/10th graders drawn from Oceanside High School through a cross-sectional analysis and an independent samples t-test. We also analyzed self-assessments collected from the Trekkers’ participants (n=89) over time, conducting paired t-tests and Wilcoxon signed-rank tests over two timepoints. Our analysis revealed positive outcomes for Trekkers participants when compared to themselves over time, as well as when compared to their peers, most notably in terms of emotional resilience, trust, relationships, school attendance and college initiation. The study provides evidence for policymakers and practitioners in Maine and beyond to support community-school partnerships focused on long-term mentoring and youth resilience building efforts to successfully promote rural youth academic and career success.

Publication Date

10-28-2024

Beyond 365 Days: A Retrospective Evaluation of Trekkers

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