In response to the academic achievement gap the Harmony Halls School District created the Select Scholars Academy (SS Academy). The academic enrichment program was initiated with 14 African American and Latino, middle school students who demonstrated high achievement or the potential for high achievement. The SS Academy consisted of a 4-day summer workshop and an ongoing component lasting a full school year.
The purpose of this grounded theory study was to determine how the African American students participating in the educational enrichment program perceived circumstances surrounding their academic achievement. Critical race theory (CRT) served as a conceptual framework for understanding some of the issues in this study.
Six female and 4 male African American students in grades 7 and 8 participated in the study. Data was ascertained via a questionnaire, semi-structured interviews, document Analysis and a focus group. Through open, axial and selective coding, 102 open codes were aggregated into 18 categories. The analysis of the relationships among these categories led to the formation of 6 axial codes. The final selective code that emerged from the data was, "Students were gaining control of their personal development." The students in the context of this academic enrichment program were able to be more in control of their lives, including being more in control in relationships, more in control of their goals, and more in control in the school setting.
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