An Evaluation of Effects of the Advancement Via Individual Determination (Avid) Program in Osceola County, Florida

The School District of Osceola County, Florida, invests heavily in the Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) program, and as such, an evaluation of effects was conducted with a sample of 10 middle schools (12,325 students) and 7 high schools (18,886 students). Propensity matching was used to determine practical effects. Providing schoolwide AVID was correlated with higher school grades in the Florida accountability system, and students in the elective were found to have statistically significantly higher GPAs, higher learning gains scores, greater enrollment in acceleration, and a higher likelihood of receiving college scholarships.

Successes and Cautionary Notes from a Two-Year Study of the Ohio Network of Education Transformation

The Ohio Network of Education Transformation (ONET) funded schools to implement different models of school reform including Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID), the Asia Society's International Studies Schools Network (ISSN), New Tech, and Early College. This article introduces these four reform models and considers their implementation and impacts for two sites each. Findings from a two-year evaluation focus on overarching themes and lessons learned across reform models. Four subsequent articles present findings from each model in greater detail. Taken together, this set of articles provides an in-depth understanding of educational reform implementation for often understudied reform models.

Challenges with Implementing the Advancement via Individual Determination (AVID) Reform Model

This case study examined the implementation of the Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) model in two schools funded for three years (2011–2014) through the Ohio Network of Education Transformation. Interviews, observations, and artifacts were gathered for two high schools over two years (2013–2014 and 2014–2015). At one year post-funding, one school's implementation of the AVID model was persevering and the other had completely halted. Several challenges with implementing the AVID model emerged to help explain the schools’ experiences and to suggest lessons learned.