UWindsor Annual Report 2007/2008

Two University of Windsor professors are working with the Windsor-Essex Catholic District School Board to formalize an educational program to help at-risk youth stay in school and reach their potential.

Faculty of Education Assistant Professor Geri Salinitri and Vicky Paraschak, an associate professor in the Department of Kinesiology, are collaborating with the Catholic Board to develop the Leadership Experience for Academic Directions (LEAD) program.

Under the mentoring program, Grade 9 students identified as being at-risk of failing to complete secondary school are matched with teacher candidates from the Faculty of Education, third and fourth-year students from kinesiology, and student success teachers from local high schools to find ways to achieve their academic goals.

“Sometimes you need alternative pathways to succeed,” Salinitri said.

As well as enlisted participants, Grade 10 students who have been through the program are encouraged to participate and provide leadership for newcomers to LEAD.

In addition to formal programming, kinesiology mentors have taken LEAD participants to a Muskoka Woods campground near Rosseau, Ontario, for the past several years, as a more casual way to expand on the program’s focus on outdoor education and environmental stewardship.

Dr. Salinitri said LEAD is the only program of its kind in Ontario and the researchers’ role will be to monitor its success and report to the Ontario Ministry of Education for a possible province-wide implementation of the initiative. Additionally, the Faculty of Education has now integrated LEAD into its curriculum to give new teachers more tools to identify the behaviours of at-risk youth and better skills to manage them.