9th Grade Academy (9GA)

“In an ideal world, all students would enter ninth grade ready for success in high school, and none of them would become derailed over the next four years. Both the research literature and the Student Data Project analyses make it clear that the reality is quite far from this ideal, however. In short, students with low levels of achievement in eighth grade are far more likely to falter in the ninth grade, and those who are off track in ninth grade have a relatively small likelihood of getting back on track to graduate within four years. Across districts, recovery rates are extremely low—particularly among students with the lowest levels of prior academic achievement.”

Center for Education Policy Research, Harvard University