Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt Bryant: Publications
- Apr 18, 2013 | CLASP's Youth Policy Team Keeping Connected Youth Newsletter - April 2013 This periodic update for the field is a part of CLASP's ongoing work to advance policy and practice that will dramatically improve the education, employment, and life outcomes for youth in communities of high youth distress. It highlights policy happenings in education, training and youth development that impact black male achievement. Download File
- Apr 03, 2013 | Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt Bryant Taking Aim at Gun Violence: Rebuilding Community Education and Employment Pathways In a single generation, our nation is faced with the prospect of losing over 132,000 black men and boys to gun violence. Moreover, for every black male who dies from gun violence, there are another 24 others who suffer non-fatal injuries - making the impacts of such violence even greater. In black communities, gun violence is about far more than reforming gun control laws and empowering law enforcement. Gun violence for young black males predominates in communities where residents live in concentrated disadvantage with high rates of unemployment, school dropout, and poverty. The absence of opportunities in these communities gives rise to criminal activity and the loss of too many young lives. Solving the crisis of gun violence in communities requires that America address the issue of concentrated poverty and geography. The rebuilding and strengthening of these communities through creating infrastructure to provide improved education and employment opportunities for black youth will significantly reduce issues of gun violence. Read Online | Download PDF | Additional PDF
- Feb 22, 2013 | CLASP's Youth Policy Team "Keeping Connected" eUpdate This periodic update for the field is a part of CLASP's ongoing work to advance policy and practice that will dramatically improve the education, employment, and life outcomes for youth in communities of high youth distress. It highlights policy happenings in education, training and youth development that impact black male achievement. Read Online
- Feb 19, 2013 | Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt Bryant, Linda Harris, Kisha Bird Investing in Boys and Young Men of Color: The Promise and Opportunity Boys and young men of color in the United States face challenges in the areas of education, employment, and health. In the last several years, there has been greater focus on understanding these challenges and identifying potential solutions. While we know more about effective programmatic solutions, we still have much to learn about the systemic barriers that impede the success of males of color. Effecting policy changes in these areas will produce sustainable gains for boys and young men of color. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation commissioned CLASP to conduct a scan of these policy opportunities to inform the development of their Forward Promise Initiative. Read Online | Download PDF
- Oct 16, 2012 | Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt Bryant Commentary on Children, Families and Poverty: Definitions, Trends, Emerging Science and Implications for Policy The topic of poverty for children is quite timely. The country's recent financial troubles have increased the number of children and families in poverty, and that number could get bigger with the looming possibility of precipitous drops in funding for the social programs needed to aid these families. This issue needs to be raised and put at the forefront of our nation's budgetary planning. We need solutions that meet the needs of these families both immediately and in the longer term. Read Online
- Aug 30, 2012 | Ivory Toldson & Candice Crowell CLASP Middle School/High School Boys of Color Policy Scan and Information Gathering This report is a summary of the findings from over 500 online and telephone surveys with local practitioners and national experts in the area of boys and young men of color. They shared perspectives on which issues were most pressing in the areas of education, employment, and health as well as solutions for moving the work forward more effectively in communities. Download PDF
- Aug 30, 2012 | Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt Bryant Education and Employment Pathways for High School Males of Color Summary of roundtable discussion with national experts on strengthening education and employment pathways for males of color in high school. Download PDF
- Aug 30, 2012 | Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt Bryant Education and Employment Pathways for Out-of-School Males of Color Summary of roundtable discussion with national experts on creating education and employment pathways for out-of-school males of color. Download PDF
- Aug 30, 2012 | Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt Bryant Education and Pathways to Employment for Middle School Boys of Color Summary of roundtable discussion with national experts on improving education outcomes and pathways to employment for boys of color in middle school. Download PDF
- Aug 30, 2012 | Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt Bryant Health for Boys and Young Men of Color Summary of roundtable discussion with national experts on issues of health for boys and young men of color. Download PDF
- May 24, 2012 | Rhonda Bryant Webinar on Connecting to Jobs: Local Strategies and Policy Approaches to Employ Black Men Although the national unemployment rate is dropping, unemployment in the black community remains significantly higher than the rate for whites or the general population. In particular, black male youth and young adults are up against a major struggle to launch themselves into self sufficiency, as unemployment in these age brackets is at an all-time high. Federal investment in employment initiatives has been insufficient, and few communities are engaged in targeted approaches to address the employment plight of black men. Read Online
- Jan 27, 2012 | CLASP Comments on the Department of Education's Strategic Plan FY2011 - 2014 In January 2012, CLASP provided comments on the Department of Education's Strategic Plan for FY 2011 - 2014. CLASP applauded the Department for putting forth a strategic plan that raises expectations for our nation's education system at all levels and moves the country toward meeting the goal of having the highest proportion of college graduates in the world by 2020. Download PDF
- Aug 19, 2011 Keeping Youth Connected: Atlanta The purpose of the community profiles project is to highlight data that help community members, advocates, and policymakers understand the nature and extent of issues facing large numbers of youth in low-income urban and rural communities. This fact sheet presents data and research related to Atlanta to help elevate the issue of youth development and high school dropout. Download PDF
- Aug 19, 2011 Keeping Youth Connected: Denver The purpose of the community profiles project is to highlight data that help community members, advocates, and policymakers understand the nature and extent of issues facing large numbers of youth in low-income urban and rural communities. This fact sheet presents data and research related to Denver to help elevate the issue of youth development and high school dropout. Download PDF
- Aug 19, 2011 Keeping Youth Connected: Houston The purpose of the community profiles project is to highlight data that help community members, advocates, and policymakers understand the nature and extent of issues facing large numbers of youth in low-income urban and rural communities. This fact sheet presents data and research related to Houston to help elevate the issue of youth development and high school dropout. Download PDF
- Aug 19, 2011 Keeping Youth Connected: Indianapolis The purpose of the community profiles project is to highlight data that help community members, advocates, and policymakers understand the nature and extent of issues facing large numbers of youth in low-income urban and rural communities. This fact sheet presents data and research related to Indianapolis to help elevate the issue of youth development and high school dropout. Download PDF
- Aug 19, 2011 Keeping Youth Connected: Jackson The purpose of the community profiles project is to highlight data that help community members, advocates, and policymakers understand the nature and extent of issues facing large numbers of youth in low-income urban and rural communities. This fact sheet presents data and research related to Jackson to help elevate the issue of youth development and high school dropout. Download PDF
- Aug 19, 2011 Keeping Youth Connected: Kansas City The purpose of the community profiles project is to highlight data that help community members, advocates, and policymakers understand the nature and extent of issues facing large numbers of youth in low-income urban and rural communities. This fact sheet presents data and research related to Kansas City to help elevate the issue of youth development and high school dropout. Download PDF
- Aug 19, 2011 Keeping Youth Connected: Los Angeles The purpose of the community profiles project is to highlight data that help community members, advocates, and policymakers understand the nature and extent of issues facing large numbers of youth in low-income urban and rural communities. This fact sheet presents data and research related to Los Angeles to help elevate the issue of youth development and high school dropout. Download PDF
- Aug 19, 2011 Keeping Youth Connected: Memphis The purpose of the community profiles project is to highlight data that help community members, advocates, and policymakers understand the nature and extent of issues facing large numbers of youth in low-income urban and rural communities. This fact sheet presents data and research related to Memphis to help elevate the issue of youth development and high school dropout. Download PDF
- Aug 19, 2011 Keeping Youth Connected: Minneapolis The purpose of the community profiles project is to highlight data that help community members, advocates, and policymakers understand the nature and extent of issues facing large numbers of youth in low-income urban and rural communities. This fact sheet presents data and research related to Minneapolis to help elevate the issue of youth development and high school dropout. Download PDF
- Aug 19, 2011 Keeping Youth Connected: Newark The purpose of the community profiles project is to highlight data that help community members, advocates, and policymakers understand the nature and extent of issues facing large numbers of youth in low-income urban and rural communities. This fact sheet presents data and research related to Newark to help elevate the issue of youth development and high school dropout. Download PDF
- Aug 19, 2011 Keeping Youth Connected: Oakland The purpose of the community profiles project is to highlight data that help community members, advocates, and policymakers understand the nature and extent of issues facing large numbers of youth in low-income urban and rural communities. This fact sheet presents data and research related to Oakland to help elevate the issue of youth development and high school dropout. Download PDF
- Aug 19, 2011 Keeping Youth Connected: Philadelphia The purpose of the community profiles project is to highlight data that help community members, advocates, and policymakers understand the nature and extent of issues facing large numbers of youth in low-income urban and rural communities. This fact sheet presents data and research related to Philadelphia to help elevate the issue of youth development and high school dropout. Download PDF
- Aug 19, 2011 Keeping Youth Connected: San Diego The purpose of the community profiles project is to highlight data that help community members, advocates, and policymakers understand the nature and extent of issues facing large numbers of youth in low-income urban and rural communities. This fact sheet presents data and research related to San Diego to help elevate the issue of youth development and high school dropout. Download PDF
- Aug 19, 2011 Keeping Youth Connected: Washington, D.C. The purpose of the community profiles project is to highlight data that help community members, advocates, and policymakers understand the nature and extent of issues facing large numbers of youth in low-income urban and rural communities. This fact sheet presents data and research related to District of Columbia to help elevate the issue of youth development and high school dropout Download PDF
- Jun 27, 2011 | CLASP Youth Policy Team Reconnecting The Disconnected: Leveraging Federal Policy & Local Practice To Expand Education & Labor Market Opportunity For Youth CLASP's youth policy work aims to advance policy and practice that will dramatically improve the education, employment, and life outcomes for youth in communities of high youth distress. Download PDF
- Mar 22, 2011 WEBCAST - We Dream a World: Re-Imagining the Landscape for Black Men and Boys Webcast of an event to advance the vision and policy solutions presented in the "We Dream A World" report, released December 2010. This event was jointly sponsored by CLASP and the 2025 Campaign for Black Men and Boys. It was the second in CLASP's 40th anniversary policy series, Policy and Promise for Low Income People in America. Read Online
- Dec 09, 2010 | Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt We Dream A World: The 2025 Vision for Black Men and Boys This compelling new report presents a broad social and political strategy to drastically change outcomes for young black boys who will come of age in the year 2025. It is the product of five years of research and brainstorming by a diverse set of scholars, researchers and other thought leaders in the African American community. Download PDF
- Jul 28, 2010 Youth Poverty, Dropout Recovery, and Youth Employment for Grantmakers for Children, Youth, and Families Download File
- Jul 01, 2010 K-12 Education and the Plight of Black Boys for the National Legal Aid & Defender Association Litigators and Advocacy Directors Conference Download File
- Mar 25, 2010 | Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt Reauthorizing ESEA: Considerations for Dropout Prevention and Recovery American school districts are losing the battle to successfully educate a large number of the nation's youth. The reauthorization of ESEA is a prime opportunity to rethink how we can strengthen our commitment to reconnect with youth who have left school without receiving their diploma. These comments, submitted to the US House of Representatives Committee on Education and Labor, focus on how to amend ESEA to ensure that struggling students and high school dropouts have access to systems, support, and funding to remain in school or re-enter the educational system and attain a viable education that prepares them for post secondary opportunities and success in careers. Download PDF
- Mar 09, 2010 | Sara Hastings, Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt, and Linda Harris Building a Comprehensive Youth Employment Delivery System: Examples of Effective Practice Many communities have shown tremendous commitment to youth employment. The return on investment and effort, however, can be greatly multiplied if federal youth funds, discretionary funding, resources from other youth serving systems, and community resources are brought together to build comprehensive youth employment system. Key elements of such a system include: a strong convening entity, an effective administrative agent, a well-trained case management arm, strong partnerships across systems that serve youth, and high quality work experience and career exposure. Download PDF
- Mar 09, 2010 | Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt, Linda Harris, and Kisha Bird Follow the Money: Funding and Legislative Opportunities on the Horizon for Communities to Serve Disconnected Youth Several pieces of legislation have been proposed or passed that present opportunities to fund programs in communities to keep young people connected to school and recapture those who have fallen by the wayside. Most of these resources, however, are from competitive funding streams which will require communities to demonstrate innovative practice in planning and implementation. Communities need to be aware of these potential opportunities very early in the process in order to plan strategically and create partnerships to program at-scale and meet the needs of their disconnected youth. Download PDF
- Feb 05, 2010 | Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt President's Budget Proposal: Opportunities for Disconnected Youth On February 1, President Obama presented his FY 2011 budget proposal to Congress. The document lays out the desired course for the president's spending priorities for the coming year. This budget reflects the administration's commitment to the education and employment of youth, and proposes increased funding in several areas that can impact programming for disadvantaged and disconnected youth. Read Online
- Jan 25, 2010 | CLASP Federal Policy Recommendations for 2010 Our nation faces many domestic challenges, including improving access to affordable health care, improving access to education as well as education outcomes, and providing debt and foreclosure relief. CLASP's 2010 federal policy recommendations are equally essential to achieving healthy and thriving families and improving the nation's prosperity. Read Online | Download PDF
- Nov 09, 2009 | Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt (CLASP) & Kisha Bird (CFY) Comments to United States Department of Education: Notice of Policy Priorities for Investing in Innovation Fund The Investing in Innovation (I3) Fund offers local education agencies (LEAs) and nonprofit organizations an opportunity to rethink how they educate children and youth and to use school reform efforts as a foundational vehicle to work across sectors and explore new and innovative ways to support student learning from birth through postsecondary education. Our comments and recommendations relate specifically to ensuring the needs of struggling students and disconnected youth are adequately addressed. Download PDF
- Sep 25, 2009 | Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt (CLASP) & Kisha Bird (CFY) Comments to United States Department of Education: Notice of Proposed Requirements for School Improvement Grants. Docket ID ED-2009-OESE-0010 Resources through School Improvement Grants offer our nation's most challenged school districts an opportunity to utilize best practices to rethink time and learning and provide our children and youth with a first-rate education experience. The rigorous interventions included in the School Improvement Grants Notice will not only raise the bar for the nation's lowest performing schools but it will provide state education agencies (SEAs) and local education agencies (LEAs) with the tools, strategies, and resources to effectively turn schools around and support our most disadvantaged students. Our comments and recommendations relate specifically to giving increased attention to struggling students and disconnected youth. Download PDF
- Sep 03, 2009 | Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt & Linda Harris Community-wide Systems That Promote High School Completion Youth develop across multiple domains that are relevant to academic success. While schools focus primarily on cognitive development, many of the supports young people receive in other developmental areas come from community-based out-of-school programming. Stimulation of development in these additional key areas builds skills that support connections to school and achievement. This article explores the need for a community-wide approach to support dropout prevention for struggling youth and re-engagement of disconnected youth. Read Online
- Sep 01, 2009 | CLASP Federal Policy Recommendations for 2009 and Beyond The Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP) has developed an extensive federal policy agenda for President Obama and the 111th Congress directed at improving the lives of low income people. That agenda is outlined in this document. Download PDF
- Aug 25, 2009 | Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt (CLASP) & Kisha Bird (CFY) Comments/Recommendations in response to Department of Education Proposed Race to the Top Fund Rules in Federal Register Document ED-2009-OESE-0006 The Race to The Top Fund will pave the way for sustainable reforms that transform the educational experience for American students. Our comments are centered around increasing the focus on students who have dropped out through targeting investments for dropout recovery and providing state education agencies (SEAs) and local education agencies (LEAs) with strategic direction to implement innovative models to reengage youth who have dropped out. Download PDF
- Aug 25, 2009 | Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt Comments/Recommendations to United States Department of Education on Proposed State Fiscal Stabilization Fund Rules. Docket ID ED-2009-OESE-0007 State Fiscal Stabilization Funds, made available through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), will pave the way for sustainable reforms that can drastically improve the educational experience and outcomes for all of America's students. Our comments on the proposed rules derive from our concern for the nation's high school dropouts. We seek necessary reforms to prevent youth disengagement from school or to re-engage them in educational options that meet their needs. A national emphasis on this population will drive state and local education agencies to think more critically about and reach out more intentionally to serve the educational needs of these young people. Download PDF
- Aug 10, 2009 | Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt Keeping Youth Connected: Focus on Cleveland To promote greater understanding of the scope of youth distress in high poverty, urban areas, we analyze data on indicators related to education, crime and victimization, employment, and family stability. This data highlights the major school, community, family and peer factors which impede a young person on the path to completing high school. Communities and advocates can use this data to galvanize support for needed interventions, and to benchmark and track progress on achieving outcomes. Download PDF
- Aug 10, 2009 | Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt Keeping Youth Connected: Focus on Minneapolis To promote greater understanding of the scope of youth distress in high poverty, urban areas, we analyze data on indicators related to education, crime and victimization, employment, and family stability. This data highlights the major school, community, family and peer factors which impede a young person on the path to completing high school. Communities and advocates can use this data to galvanize support for needed interventions, and to benchmark and track progress on achieving outcomes. Download PDF
- Aug 06, 2009 | Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt Keeping Youth Connected: Focus on Atlanta To promote greater understanding of the scope of youth distress in high poverty, urban areas, we analyze data on indicators related to education, crime and victimization, employment, and family stability. This data highlights the major school, community, family and peer factors which impede a young person on the path to completing high school. Communities and advocates can use this data to galvanize support for needed interventions, and to benchmark and track progress on achieving outcomes. Download PDF
- Aug 06, 2009 | Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt Keeping Youth Connected: Focus on Washington, DC To promote greater understanding of the scope of youth distress in high poverty, urban areas, we analyze data on indicators related to education, crime and victimization, employment, and family stability. This data highlights the major school, community, family and peer factors which impede a young person on the path to completing high school. Communities and advocates can use this data to galvanize support for needed interventions, and to benchmark and track progress on achieving outcomes. Download PDF
- Aug 05, 2009 | Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt Keeping Youth Connected: Focus on Chicago To promote greater understanding of the scope of youth distress in high poverty, urban areas, we analyze data on indicators related to education, crime and victimization, employment, and family stability. This data highlights the major school, community, family and peer factors which impede a young person on the path to completing high school. Communities and advocates can use this data to galvanize support for needed interventions, and to benchmark and track progress on achieving outcomes. Download PDF
- Aug 05, 2009 | Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt Keeping Youth Connected: Focus on Detroit To promote greater understanding of the scope of youth distress in high poverty, urban areas, we analyze data on indicators related to education, crime and victimization, employment, and family stability. This data highlights the major school, community, family and peer factors which impede a young person on the path to completing high school. Communities and advocates can use this data to galvanize support for needed interventions, and to benchmark and track progress on achieving outcomes. Download PDF
- Jul 30, 2009 | Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt Keeping Youth Connected: Focus on Boston To promote greater understanding of the scope of youth distress in high poverty, urban areas, we analyze data on indicators related to education, crime and victimization, employment, and family stability. This data highlights the major school, community, family and peer factors which impede a young person on the path to completing high school. Communities and advocates can use this data to galvanize support for needed interventions, and to benchmark and track progress on achieving outcomes. Download PDF
- Jul 30, 2009 | Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt Keeping Youth Connected: Focus on Oakland To promote greater understanding of the scope of youth distress in high poverty, urban areas, we analyze data on indicators related to education, crime and victimization, employment, and family stability. This data highlights the major school, community, family and peer factors which impede a young person on the path to completing high school. Communities and advocates can use this data to galvanize support for needed interventions, and to benchmark and track progress on achieving outcomes. Download PDF
- Jul 30, 2009 | Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt Keeping Youth Connected: Focus on Philadelphia To promote greater understanding of the scope of youth distress in high poverty, urban areas, we analyze data on indicators related to education, crime and victimization, employment, and family stability. This data highlights the major school, community, family and peer factors which impede a young person on the path to completing high school. Communities and advocates can use this data to galvanize support for needed interventions, and to benchmark and track progress on achieving outcomes. Download PDF
- May 21, 2009 | Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt American Recovery and Reinvestment Act: Provisions Which Can Support Programming to Improve Outcomes for Black Men & Boys Prior to the economic downturn, Black males already faced disproportionately negative outcomes in so many areas, including education, health, justice, and employment. The recession has only exacerbated the problems faced by this population. There is a case to be made for targeting American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) resources to this population and for using these one-time resources to begin to put in place programs and efforts which will have lasting effects for Black males. This document highlights the funding streams in the ARRA which may provide such opportunities. Download PDF
- Apr 14, 2009 | Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt Identifying Opportunities in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to Improve Outcomes for Black Men and Boys Black men and boys face disproportionately negative life outcomes in many domains, particularly education, employment and justice. This audio conference will identify opportunities in the ARRA to provide education, training, and supportive services in a targeted manner to black men and boys. Download Audio | Additional PDF
- Jan 01, 2009 | Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt Lessons Learned: Community Perspectives on Supporting the Path to Positive Outcomes for Youth CLASP convened city leadership from eight communities around the country which face the problem of high levels of youth distress. These city leaders provided their grounded perspective on the challenges that communities face when trying to create a continuum of supportive services at sufficient scale to serve all their youth. They also discuss the role that national policy organizations can play in supporting their work. Download PDF
- Jul 02, 2008 | Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt and Jonathan Larsen (National Youth Employment Coalition) Comments/Recommendations in response to Department of Education Proposed NCLB Rules in Federal Register Document E8-8700 Adaptations to No Child Left Behind provide an opportunity to strengthen our nation's educational structure and system of services to better educate struggling students and to re-engage youth who have dropped out. Our comments relate specifically to giving increased attention to struggling students and disconnected youth. Local education agencies can be incentivized to pay closer attention to these populations through increasing the graduation rate requirements, and Supplemental Education Services and public school choice are potential vehicles for providing these students with the educational environments and supports to increase their academic success. Download PDF
- May 16, 2008 | Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt A Collective Responsibility, A Collective Work: Supporting the Path to Positive Life Outcomes for Youth in Economically Distressed Communities This paper presents a picture of risk and challenge for youth in distressed communities and outlines how these communities can band together to create a continuum of supportive activities to bolster youth's success in school and life. As youth grow and develop, individualized support and exposure to new experiences has a significant impact on their life trajectory. Youth in economically distressed communities deserve to have access to these types of opportunities, which are much more readily available to their peers in other communities. This investment in youth can have a positive effect on academic success, future life earnings, family stability, and the livelihood of the community. This paper may be helpful in guiding a community's thinking about how to get started in creating a sustainable support system for all of its youth. Click here to download the Executive Summary. Download PDF
- Sep 11, 2007 | Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt, Linda Harris, Mala Thakur, and Jonathan Larsen Recommendations to Improve No Child Left Behind for Struggling Students and Disconnected Youth Every day, an estimated 2,500 students across the nation drop out of high school. While the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) has succeeded in bringing to light the disparities that exist in our education system, it has failed to shine a light and provide solutions to the pressing problem of high school dropouts. These recommendations--by CLASP and the National Youth Employment Coalition--focus on how the resources in NCLB can be used to ensure that these youth have access to systems, support, and funding to attain a viable education that prepares them for future learning opportunities and the world of work. Download PDF
- Jul 20, 2007 | Linda Harris and Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt Recommended Changes to the No Child Left Behind Act to Address Workforce Issues CLASP recommendations submitted to the House Subcommittee on Higher Education, Lifelong Learning, and Competitiveness of the Committee on Education and Labor. Download PDF