Diploma Project counselors such as Nancy Garcia, pictured here, help students earn their high school degree. (Heidi Carreon/Neon Tommy)

After 375 desks placed in front of the office building for the Los Angeles public school system brought traffic to a halt—a symbolic gesture representing the weekly high school dropout rate in the district—graduation rates for schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District have been a continued cause for concern.

But the school system might be turning a corner. A report from the California Department of Education, released at the end of April, revealed that the graduation rate in the LAUSD was 67.9 percent in 2012-2013. The numbers mark an increase of 1.3 percentage points from the previous school year.

One program that has been working consistently to improve graduation rates in the district is the Diploma Project.

The program, federally funded by the High School Graduation Initiative, currently helps six LAUSD public high schools—Belmont, Dorsey, Fremont, Gardena, Huntington Park and San Fernando—and also their feeder middle schools. These schools are identified as those with the most “need” based on graduation rate, dropout rate, attendance rate and test scores. 

According to its webpage, Diploma Project aims to increase attendance, improve grades in Math and English and also promote graduation. Middle school and ninth grade students are identified as “at-risk for dropout” based on their attendance, standard test scores and behavioral record (which may include a history of bad attitude or picking fights).

A counselor at each school works with these students and strives to promote graduation to the general school by conducting advising sessions for graduation, establishing after-school credit recovery courses, and leading college field trips. They also provide job skills workshops, which include resume building and interview practice. 

“We aim to work with students as early as possible,” Marquis Jones, the Fremont High School Graduation Promotion Counselor (GPC) said. “Research shows that attendance and academic habits develop early.”

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The Diploma Project does not work exclusively with currently enrolled students. A second counselor at each high school works with upperclassmen in danger of dropping out and also assists with dropouts to earn diplomas. 

“There are two types of dropouts,” said Josefina Gallo-Aguilar, the San Fernando High School Re-entry Graduation Promotion Counselor (RGPC).

Some dropouts, Gallo explained, leave one school to transfer to another school. Yet, “for whatever reason,” did not enroll at the intended school; student records are often lost during the process. RGPCs like Gallo are responsible for finding these students, which often involves making house calls, and persuading them to either transfer to their intended school or sign up for a GED program. 

Other dropouts, according to Gallo, are students who suddenly stopped going to school and still have records on file with the school. These students also receive house calls by an RGPC and are encouraged to continue their education.

Despite the efforts of Diploma Project counselors, they often face challenges. According to Jones, some school administrators may clash with counselors and not approve certain programs such as after school credit recovery. The other major problem is that not all students graduate. Jones cited “outside uncontrollable factors” such as family issues as the cause, as well as low self-motivation.

“Most students who are not successful are those who just don’t believe in themselves.”

The students who do find success through the Diploma Project are often rewarded by the program. For instance, some counselors throw an awards ceremony for students who improve their grades. Also, many counselors have a “freshman graduation” ceremony for students who complete ninth grade.

“We do it to give them a taste of what graduation is like,” said Nancy Garcia, the GPC of San Fernando High School, “And also as a way to encourage students to continue school, since many students drop out after ninth grade.”

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The effectiveness of the Diploma Project is apparent. From 2011, the year in which the program launched, to 2013, all of the six high schools serviced by the program experienced a rise in graduation rate and a decline in dropout rate. According to California Department of Education records, Belmont Senior High experienced the biggest improvement, with an increase of 18.5 percentage points for graduation rate and a decline 21.1 percentage points for dropout rate. 

There is hope to expand the program to other schools in the district. Gallo believes that having a GPC and an RGPC at each high school would boost the district’s graduation rate.

“[At San Fernando High School] we have a ratio of 600 current students to one [regular] counselor, not even counting drop outs,” explained Gallo, “One counselor cannot worry about every single student. That’s where we come in and students get the help they need.”

In the end, the counselors know that all the effort and challenges of the Diploma Project is to ultimately help their students succeed. The nature of their job allows them to know each of the students they work with, and for many counselors, the students are their inspiration.

As Garcia put it, “In reality, we should be thanking out students. We go through the struggles and the obstacles every day because of our students. I want to be here because I know they depend on me.”

Contact staff reporter Heidi Carreon here and follow her on Twitter here