Anti-Poverty Education Programs - Change Agents Using Incentives
August 16, 2006
A while back, we wrote about a powerful and innovative education program in New York led by Geoffrey Canada. Surveying the landscape, this article caught my attention.
What is striking about both examples is their use of incentives to accomplish a desired behavior. Economists tell us that people are generally self-interested. Given that reality, change agents cannot overlook the importance of motivational incentives when attempting to achieve a mission or vision. All too often this basic issue is overlooked, despite its impact on driving the right behavior.
Take for example a program in Michigan, where anonymous donors offer free college tuition to public high school graduates. Before this program began, students regularly skipped classes or avoided school altogether. Now, thanks to a purely financial incentive (full college tuition), behavior has changed dramatically. These programs tend to be attractive to parents as well-a fact also demonstrated in the Geoffrey Canada story.
Here are some relevant portions of the article about Michigan’s education programs.
Kalamazoo Promise
How it got started: Anonymous donors, who had been meeting in private to discuss how to stimulate the city's economy, announced in late 2005 that they would offer free college tuition to graduates of the public schools in Kalamazoo, Mich.
Results: Enrollment is climbing after years of decline, and more teens are staying in school.
Cost: Estimated $2 million to $3 million first year, $10 million to $12 million annually at peak.
About 350 recent Kalamazoo graduates will be the first to take advantage of the offer this fall at any public college or university in Michigan.
Bob Jorth, executive administrator of Kalamazoo Promise, said the amount of tuition covered is based on how long the student attended the city schools.
Jorth gets almost daily inquiries from communities interested in copying the program. Dayton officials discussed that prospect in July.
"If there's a will, I think it can be done," Jorth said when asked if it would work in a big district like Cleveland.
More information: www.kalamazoopublicschools.com.
Thoughts or reactions? Please send them to us.