our impact

In the News

Nearly 19,000 youth in King County are neither working nor in school. How one Seattle nonprofit is changing that.

RENTON - Before Cathylyn Abuan left prison last year, she completed a few high school credits that brought her closer to finally earning a diploma. Abuan left with a hunger for more education - a chance to work toward a better future. She just didn't know how to get there.

We know thousands of King County students leave high school without a diploma. Now we're starting to learn why.

Last year, Seattle made headlines for being the most highly educated big city in the U.S. - in large part thanks to the newcomers moving here with college degrees. Those headlines, though, masked the trajectories of many who were born and raised around here.

Evaluations

An external evaluation by the Urban Institute has shown that students are three times more likely to enroll in post-secondary education when working with one of our Education Advocates. Male students of color are seven times as likely to enroll.

In conjunction with the University of Washington School of Social Work and the Community Center for Education Results, NW Education Access conducted a study exploring student narratives of disengagement and reengagement.

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