Experts often say that every child who changes classrooms during the year may lose as much as six months of their education. The children living in Family Abuse Center are lucky if this is the first move they have made this year. All too often, they have jumped from school to school, sometimes with big gaps between school attendance. While many of our kids are extremely bright, they haven’t been given the opportunity to have a stable education. As many as are behind in school, there are many who are actually talented and gifted. Most of our kids are eager to learn and excited about having an educational opportunity.
Family Abuse Center provides many services to the children living in the shelter. Our Children’s Coordinator, Brittany, oversees group three times a week where the children are in age appropriate groups learning social skills, enrichment activities and play. Our Counselor, Lizeth provides individual counseling, as well as opportunities for the children to have therapeutic play activity. The Homework Lab is open every day after school with volunteers and staff assisting each child on their assignments for the next day and allowing the children time to enrich their education with educational computer activities. Our computers and computer materials were donated by the Rapoport Foundation. Whether a child spends one day or several months in our shelter, our goal is that his/her education has been enriched during his/her stay here at Family Abuse Center.
Just recently, the Waco Independent School District released statistics for the 2012-2013 grant cycle for the Waco ISD Homeless Outreach Services:
Attendance Rate for all homeless students in WISD: 95.35%
Gradduation Rate for homeless seniors in WISD: 93% (the graduation rate for homeless students in the state of Texas is less than 25%)
Those statistics include the children living at Family Abuse Center or in our housing programs in the community. Congratulations to all.