Prince George’s County Public Schools and Junior Achievement Team To Impact Financial Literacy For County Students: Junior Achievement’s 3DE Launches in Prince George’s County

Transformative High School Model Boasts 46 Percent Increase in Graduation Rates

By Raoul Dennis // @suitemagazine

Photography By Maurice Fitzgerald Appears Courtesy G.S. Proctor & Associates

Portions of this report were written and provided by Junior Achievement of Greater Washington

Books, blackboards, calculators and laptops are all well and good.

But get a child to make the real world connection between the costs of their new Xbox and their credit report – and how to apply that using their own money and there’s a breakthrough of understanding that can transform how families deal with financing in years ahead.

It can change the course of how future generations approach and handle money. It can create a pivot in cycles of generational impoverishment.

Reaching?

Not so, according to the leaders at Junior Achievement of Greater Washington, Prince George’s County Pubic Schools and G.S. Proctor & Associates. At JA, young people learn and apply real world family and financial literacy education through model experiences and exercises. In fact, they report that their high school model has led to a 46 percent increase in graduation rates.

At nearly 50%, those are numbers that are “real world” enough on their own to encourage county education, civic and business leaders to see the value in bringing the program to Prince George’s.

“I call it the game changer of education,” says Steve Proctor, president and CEO of G.S. Proctor & Associates. The firm represents the Prince George’s County Pubic Schools. Proctor also sits on the Junior Achievement board of directors. From that vantage point, Proctor saw the potential impact of a partnership between the schools and Junior Achievement.

“This is a practical, hands-on scenario,” Proctor says of the Junior Achievement model and why it works so well. “This isn’t just the traditional ‘read pages 3 through 20 and there will be a quiz,’ approach to learning. A business comes along and presents a challenge to the students and they have to get together and solve it. They have to know reading , math, critical thinking, finance, public speaking and more and apply all of it to address the issue and present a solution. It’s challenging and highly interactive. They have to make it work. It’s meeting students where they are today and taking it to the next level. You have to apply all the skill sets an individual needs to make it in today’s business world.”

Junior Achievement of Greater Washington, in partnership with Prince George’s County Public Schools and Potomac High School, announced the fall 2020 launch of 3DE at Potomac High School Oct. 1 (click here for more photos). The event was co-sponsored by G.S. Proctor & Associates and Junior Achievement of Greater Washington. G.S. Proctor & Associates is the largest minority owned lobbying firm in Maryland.

The scale of the event was elevated due to an understanding of the sweeping impact the program is expected to have on education in the county. Shortly after Chief Executive Officer of Prince George’s County Public Schools Dr. Monica Goldson’s visit to Atlanta, GA to review 3DE, the decision was made to bring a version of the program to Prince George’s. The Oct. 1 soft launch event to announce the fall 2020 arrival of 3DE included some 110 community, business, education, religious leaders from across the county. Elected officials and dozens of county VIPs were also present as well as nearly 20 Potomac High School students.

“We brought them together so that they could all see the effect and impact of this effort,” Proctor says.

Held at Junior Achievement Finance Park in Prince George’s, the format included a panel discussion moderated by Proctor with Dr. Goldson, Ed Grenier, President and CEO, Junior Achievement of Greater Washington and Jack Harris, President and CEO of 3DE. The three also fielded questions from the esteemed audience about the workings and potential of the program. Potomac High School students, some of whom were former JA participants themselves, also directed questions to the three-member panel.

United around the belief that equitable access to high-quality education is the lever to economic mobility, 3DE is re-engineering traditional curriculum to be more experiential and better reflect the real world. By integrating relevant content, interdisciplinary pedagogy, entrepreneurial thinking, project/problem-based learning and authentic workplace experiences, 3DE schools empower students to achieve greater economic opportunity.

Originally piloted in Georgia in 2015, 3DE schools have seen tremendous success, with students consistently outperforming their host school peers on all state standard benchmarks and milestones. Since its implementation in Fulton County, Georgia’s lowest performing high school, 3DE has seen a 46 percent increase in graduation rates and a 30 percent reduction in transiency.

“Working in partnership with the Prince George’s County Public Schools (click here for upcoming education listening conference dates) and Potomac High School has allowed us to bring 3DE’s transformative capabilities to the Greater Washington region and build on the established success of the 3DE model,” said Ed Grenier, President and CEO, Junior Achievement of Greater Washington. “By connecting education to real-world concepts through 3DE, we aim to improve students’ appreciation for academics, give them vision to see what is possible in the future and equip them with the skills they need to be 100 percent prepared for the real world.”

In addition to a breakfast and brief program, Dr. Goldson, spoke about the innovative partnership that has been formed with Junior Achievement and her excitement for the launch of 3DE in 2020 at Potomac High School. Jack Harris, President and CEO of 3DE, was also in attendance.

“Using an innovative model, 3DE will complement our portfolio of high school programs with rigorous standards-based education and real-world authenticity. This unique program enables innovation to work from the inside-out towards positive outcomes for the high school community and Prince George's County as a whole,” said Dr. Goldson. “We are excited to launch this signature program at Potomac High School. This is an exciting development for all of our students, parents, business partners and PGCPS stakeholders.”

About Junior Achievement of Greater Washington:

Junior Achievement of Greater Washington is a non-profit organization that is changing the game for D.C. Metro area youth with relevant experiential education in financial literacy, work readiness and entrepreneurship. We bring together school systems, business leaders and trained mentor volunteers to provide equal access to the tools, people and experiences all youth need to be 100% prepared for real life in the real world. That means students gain what matters most: control over their own lives, futures and careers. To learn more, visit myJA.org.

About 3DE National:

3DE by Junior Achievement is dedicated to expanding economic opportunity and economic mobility by re-engineering high school education to improve student engagement, accelerate academic outcomes, and develop competencies to excel in the future of work. 3DE schools are developed and sustained through joint venture partnerships with school districts, 3DE by Junior Achievement and the broader business community. 3DE launched in Atlanta in 2015 and by 2024 aims to expand to 55 schools serving nearly 20,000 students.

About Prince George’s County Public Schools: Prince George's County Public Schools (PGCPS), one of the nation's 25 largest school districts, has 206 schools and centers, more than 134,000 students and 22,000 employees. Under the leadership of Dr. Monica Goldson, the school system serves a diverse student population from urban, suburban and rural communities located in the Washington, DC suburbs. PGCPS is nationally recognized for college and career-readiness programs that provide students with unique learning opportunities, including dual enrollment and language immersion.

For more information, contact Grace Foster at Grace.Foster@JA.org

Portions of this report were written and provided by Junior Achievement of Greater Washington