Collaborative School Success Project
Aims to Increase Graduation

Alcoa Funds Links to Success
at St. Stephen Middle School

May 2007

Rodrick McCray was a sixth-grader at St. Stephen Middle School with discipline and academic problems. Growing up in a single-parent home, he was a typical child at-risk of dropping out and struggling in life.

Then Alcoa and Roger Green came into his life. Roger is the Student Support Specialist for Communities in Schools of the Charleston Area, which is coordinating comprehensive in-school programs to help children at St. Stephen Middle succeed. Rodrick got the academic and life mentoring he needed.

Today, Rodrick isn’t just getting better grades and demonstrating good behavior. He’s actually helping teachers and making himself an asset in school. Most importantly, research shows that boys like Rodrick who have developed “protective factors” like high self-esteem and goal setting, are much less likely to drop out.

The series of programs at St. Stephen are part of an initiative of Trident United Way called Links to Success, to reduce the staggering dropout rate in the Lowcountry. The effort at St. Stephen is funded by a $50,000 grant from Alcoa.

“As part of the business community, we’re concerned about the workforce of tomorrow,” said Mark Dunlay, Alcoa-Mt. Holly’s plant manager. “Studies show that about 40% of Lowcountry students drop out of school and many young adults have low levels of literacy. We need to help turn that around so those students can excel and become strong members of the workforce,” he said.

Links to Success is a school success initiative designed to help school-age kids acquire the academic and life skills to graduate high school and be successful in life.

Links to Success focuses on coordinating academic and non-academic support for children and delivering services in identified schools. It aims to increase protective factors (e.g., parental involvement) and reduce risk factors (e.g., high-risk behaviors, etc.)