In January 2006, Michelle Fine and Stan Karp, two members of the Abbott Secondary Education Advisory Group, initiated a youth research project with the support of a grant from the Community Foundation of NJ. The idea was to gather groups of students at two high schools implementing the Secondary Education Initiative and to develop a research project related to the issues the reform was designed to address. The effort was modeled on a growing national movement of participatory youth research projects that engage high school students in studying and organizing around issues of schooling in urban America.

The project drew support from the Participatory Action Research Collective of the City University of New York, Graduate Center, including Professor Jennifer Ayala of St. Peter’s College and Professor Yasser Payne of the University of Delaware. Two research teams of educators and youth evolved: one at Snyder high school in Jersey City and one at Orange High School in Orange. Each team includes a university-based faculty member who serves as project coordinator, an in-school educator-liaison and a diverse team of youth researchers.

The Jersey City team, which dubbed itself the "Chilltown Researchers," includes Prof. Ayala, and guidance counselor Sweety Patel. The Orange High Collective includes Prof. Payne, teacher and curriculum supervisor, Tia Burnett, and Liza Pappas from the Graduate Center. Teams of six to ten students were selected at each school through an application and interview process. Both Snyder and Orange High now have strong youth research collectives in place, documenting different aspects of student and teacher experience in Abbott high schools.

Over the course of the Spring 06 semester, the research teams met within their schools, training students in the history of the Abbott decision, plans for the secondary reform and in research methods and the national movement of youth research. To connect the two teams across schools, a Youth Research Retreat was held for approximately 20 students at St. Peter’s College in early June of 2006. The student teams heard additional presentations on research methods and project design, Abbott history and policy, and presentations from other youth researchers from New York City who have been studying urban high schools, the drop out/push out problem, and youth encounters with the criminal justice system.

Each group generated a key research question to be investigated over the academic year September 2006 through June 2007. At Snyder High School the question focuses on the negative reputation and public perception of the school – as reproduced in the newspapers, public opinion and community beliefs. The students are studying the "reality" and the "stereotype" of Snyder High School historically through archival analyses of yearbooks and newspapers, and district data on drop out rates, student achievement, teacher attendance, etc. They are currently interviewing members of the school community about their perceptions of and experiences with Snyder High School. They are developing a website to present their findings and to encourage conversations among students at Snyder.

At Orange High School, Youth Researchers have designed a large-scale research analysis of school climate issues, including issues of school/community violence and safety. They are currently surveying several hundred youth about their experiences and will be conducting focus groups with youth and educators.

While the focus is different at each school, the students have expressed common themes about using research to make a difference:

The Orange High School Collective describes their work as follows:

We at the Orange High School Collective think that students conducting research is education for liberation. Research is not just looking on the internet for answers, it’s actually going out and finding out facts for yourselves. Young people should do the research because we are the same age as our classmates, and we are doing it not because we are getting paid but because we want to make things better. The research is not just benefiting us as individuals but our entire school.

Members of the Snyder team expressed similar thoughts. For example, Chris Hammond wrote:

Being a Chilltown Researcher means a lot to me. I am a very outgoing person and have always looked for ways to make a difference. I see this project as an outlet to improving Abbott school districts as a whole. With this research I hope to bring to light the issues that have been plaguing districts similar to mine and begin the healing process. So far I have compiled a few interviews from students and teachers detailing their different feelings about my school and the most serious issues they believe are corrupting it. With this valuable information we hope to make clear the true problems that are issues in our school district and those similar to it.

Our research is much more than just figures and numbers. What we are doing may play a vital role in the reformation of Abbott districts. It will also give students and teachers a united voice that is much stronger than two separate ones. I've learned that the issues students and teachers believe are a problem aren't very different. However there are some discrepancies, such as blame for certain issues as well as the way to correct these quandaries. After our project is done, I hope it will have positive effects on my school, community, and anyone who reads ours findings whether it be in a small or major way. A little positive change helps out and furthers the healing process.

Caroline Garcia adds:

I joined the Chilltown researchers because I was interested in making a difference in my school and to show our community how our school is doing and what needs to be done.

Edric Engalla explained:

I’m 16 years old and a junior at Henry Snyder High School. I am a Filipino-American, born and raised here in the United States, but not lacking in the knowledge of my own culture. Being in a Filipino family I’ve always been pushed to be above average, my parents would not accept less than a B at least. For this reason, I have been instilled with the traits to achieve work hard, strive for excellence, and go to college. It’s also given me the opportunities to take part in clubs, groups and organizations such as Citywide Student Council, TCP Scholars Program and, of course, the Chilltown Researchers.

I feel it to be an honor to be in the Chilltown Researchers...I feel that with the Chilltown Researchers I can better my knowledge of my own surroundings and expand my way of thinking. I’d also like to maybe solve some of the mysteries as to why this environment is this way rather than accepting the assumptions people have. Even with my short time in this group I have already learned more about my environment that I would not have known otherwise.

And Jonathan Irizarry wrote:

I am a 17-year old student at Snyder high school who is trying to make a difference. I am a football player but not your average jock. Along with being a football player I am an artist who likes to express his feelings through his art...I am a student who is just tired of settling and not being able to reach for the greater things. I come from a family of four, my grandmother, my sister, my mom, and, of course, me. I grew up without a father and I feel that doing so has made me a stronger person, and has allowed me to mature beyond my years.

I joined the researchers because I felt it was a great opportunity to stop talking about change and actually working toward it. Once I heard we were going to focus on our high school I felt it was a great chance to change so many minds. I feel that when people hear the name Snyder they tend to focus on the negatives such as kids who could care less about getting an education. What people fail to see is a group of individuals who actually want to improve.

Over the course of the spring semester, the research teams hope to:

• Visit small schools in New York City to assess what "inquiry based" learning looks like, and how curriculum, pedagogy and assessment are organized in inquiry-based, non-tracked public high schools
• Make presentations to local audiences, including the Board of Education, teachers, parents, and community groups
• Present their process and projects to a Secondary Education Network meeting
• Meet with doctoral students in Urban Education and Social Psychology to discuss their research methods and findings (May, 2007, The Graduate Center, CUNY)
• Some team members plan to attend a National Conference on Youth and Education – Education for Liberation in Chicago this June.

Beyond the individual research products, the teams hope to provide a collective student perspective to the Abbott SEI reform effort. Longer term, we are seeking continued funding to sustain the project beyond this year; to support expansion and outreach to other districts and sites, and, eventually, to encourage the NJDOE and other stakeholders to sponsor a statewide gathering/conference for Abbott youth.

Prepared: March 8, 2007