Get Focused...Stay Focused!

Bob Hawkes, Director of Workforce Development
Kern Community College

Understanding that cost can significantly impact scalability, Get Focused...Stay Focused!® (GFSF) is a low-cost program developed by social entrepreneurs. A public/private partnership with Academic Innovations, a mission-oriented educational publisher, means that pricing for the print and online GFSF curriculum components can be kept well below standard commercial rates. And, because the program is designed to be delivered by existing classroom teachers, no specialized personnel are required.

One anticipated outcome for schools delivering the GFSF program with fidelity is increased attendance. Because a significant amount of public school funding is based on ADA (average daily attendance), when ADA improves funds for that campus are automatically increased. The hope is that a GFSF program implemented with fidelity will become self-sustaining, with increased motivation resulting in improved attendance resulting in increased ADA funding. Watch the video on this page for an explanation of how this could work.

The support available through the curriculum materials, professional development resources, and technical assistance also help to make the Get Focused...Stay Focused!® program easily scalable and sustainable.

With extensive professional development and technical support resources available, schools can quickly be ready to implement with fidelity. For professional educators, there are print and online resources for self-directed learning, and there are a variety of workshop, conference, and technical assistance options to provide guided capacity building.

The Get Focused...Stay Focused!® Program and Instructional Manual, a 528-page resource, provides insights and guidance on:

The issues that drive Get Focused...Stay Focused!®
Quickstart resources
Delivering the “Get Focused” and “Stay Focused” curriculum materials
Resources and strategies for a School-wide Initiative
College and high school collaboration
Program planning
Evaluation and assessment of your efforts
Sustainability and funding

Work is ongoing to compile and disseminate best practices and, with assistance from Academic Innovations, feedback from member schools results in updates and additions to the online teachers’ tools.

The GFSF program is widely used throughout California and is beginning to impact several other states. The Get Focused...Stay Focused!® Center for Research and Technical Assistance and its partner organizations are committed to sharing the program model at state and national conferences. Recent outreach efforts at conferences include:

Strengthening Student Success, which is sponsored by the Research & Planning Group (RP Group) of the California Community College system, where GFSF co-founders present
California Community College Association of Occupational Education (CCCAOE) holds two large conferences each year and GFSF provides sessions

In addition GFSF participates in a variety of national and state conferences including:

California Educating for Careers conference (each March)
National Association for Concurrent Enrollment Partnerships (NACEP) conference

	MediaCareers
	*Partners or collaborators* Foundation for California Community Colleges George Washington University’s Freshman Transition Initiative California Community College Chancellor's Task Force on Student Success Academic Innovations LLC UCSB Graduate School of Education California Dropout Research Project UC Educational Evaluation Center, Gevirtz Graduate School of Education	Eastern Oregon University’s College of Education California SB1070 Coordinators from select regions Santa Barbara Foundation Santa Barbara City College Dual Enrollment Department Carpinteria and Santa Barbara Unified School Districts Santa Barbara County Office of Education’s Partners in Education

Scalability