This program is for students in kindergarten through 12th grade who are at risk of dropping out of school.

Check & Connect, a targeted school-based dropout-prevention program, is designed to improve participants' academic performance, behavior, and attendance by matching students with trained mentors who actively monitor and engage with students.

Results across several randomized controlled trials are mixed. Positive results include significant increases up to 4 years after program implementation on students’ participation in school and school performance when compared to control students, significant decreases in drop-out rates at the end of high school, and significant increases in students’ participation with their transition plans in their Individualized Education Programs in comparison to control students. However, other studies have found no differences between intervention and control groups in grade point average, academic progress, core course failures, measures of attendance, office disciplinary referrals, student-teacher relationships, goal-setting and problem-solving, measures of engagement, the likelihood of dropping out, or graduation rates. In addition, studies have been conducted on elementary school students; however, results are unclear due to study design.

Check & Connect creates partnerships among the school, home, and family using four primary components that are designed to enhance students' engagement in school.

• Mentor: This individual develops a positive, trusting relationship with students and helps to keep them engaged in school;
• Check: Mentors monitor school attendance, behavioral issues, and academic performance for signs of disengagement;
• Connect: Mentors provide individualized interventions to students, based on data collected from the Check component, to help reestablish student’s connection to school and learning; and
• Home-school communication: Mentors establish regular, formal and informal communication between the school and the student’s home in order to engage parents and increase home support for learning.

These four components work to counter student risk factors that may lead to low academic performance, dropping out of school, and anti-social behavior.

Check & Connect, developed by the University of Minnesota in 1990, has been used across the United States and internationally.

This program is implemented by trained mentors, who are typically in-school staff members. There is a comprehensive manual to help with program implementation and several on-site and off-site options for training. On-site, off-site, and online training options are available on the following topics: Preparation and Implementation, Mentor Training, and Fidelity of Implementation. Please visit www.checkandconnect.umn.edu/training_consultation/default.html for more information.

Considerations for implementing this program include acquiring administrative and participant buy-in, recruiting facilitators and ensuring they receive training, finding time for mentors and students to meet during an existing daily schedule, and ensuring the intervention is implemented with fidelity.

The Clearinghouse can help address these considerations. Please call 1-877-382-9185 or email Clearinghouse@psu.edu

If you are interested in implementing Check & Connect, the Clearinghouse is interested in helping you!
Please call 1-877-382-9185 or email Clearinghouse@psu.edu

This program operates throughout the school year, and mentors check in with their students weekly. Mentor engagement with parents varies. Mentors typically maintain their caseloads for a minimum of 2 years.

Implementation costs vary based on location and number of mentors and participants. The manual and supporting materials are included in the training costs or can be purchased separately. If purchased separately, manuals cost $50 each.

To move Check & Connect to the Promising category on the Clearinghouse Continuum of Evidence at least one evaluation with a strong study design must be conducted that demonstrates sustained, positive effects on all key program outcomes.

The Clearinghouse can help you develop an evaluation plan to ensure the program components are meeting your goals.
Please call 1-877-382-9185 or email Clearinghouse@psu.edu

Contact the Clearinghouse with any questions regarding this program.
Phone: 1-877-382-9185 Email: Clearinghouse@psu.edu

You may also contact Check & Connect by mail Institute on Community Integration, University of Minnesota, 2025 East River Parkway, Minneapolis, MN 55414, phone 1-866-434-0010, email checkandconnect@umn.edu, or visit http://www.checkandconnect.umn.edu/contactus/default.html

http://www.checkandconnect.umn.edu/; Heppen et al. (2017); and Powers, Hagans, and Linn (2017).