| The purpose of this study was to document how two Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) exemplary Adopt-A-School programs were started, cultivated, and implemented, and how challenges were resolved.The research questions of the two exemplary partnerships were crafted to determine the characteristics, the key benefits to schools, the key benefits to businesses, and the hurdles that were overcome. One-on-one semi-structured interviews were conducted with business and school personnel, students and parents. Archival Adopt-A-School documents were examined at the two businesses, the two schools, and LAUSD's Partnership Office.The results of twenty-eight interviews were compiled. The data from these interviews were arranged into four major topic areas related to the research questions: characteristics, benefits for the school, benefits for the business, and hurdles encountered. Common themes were identified.The most frequently cited themes are reported for each topic area. Characteristics: Leadership, communication, commitment, partner selection, planning, evaluation, recognition. Benefits for schools: Enhanced learning experiences and resources for students, improved self-esteem and behavior of students, recognition for improvement, enhanced understanding of public education by business and community members, trust and collaboration established between business and public education. Benefits for business: Improved community relations, sense of pride and loyalty toward employers, increased collaboration with public schools. Hurdles: Lack of communication, unrealistic expectations, lack of leadership, principal's lack of understanding, lack of time and commitment of both school and business personnel. The information for this study may prove valuable to those who consider establishing or participating in Adopt-A-School programs and to those who wish to evaluate established programs. |
