The Chess Tutors Program primarily serves high-risk families in Los Angeles’s low-income and public housing communities. Targeted families include those with identified problems, such as single-parent households, welfare-assisted families, unemployed parent(s), and/or families headed by a young and inexperienced parent(s).

The residents in these communities face the most severe problems plaguing inner-city neighborhoods. Over 25% of all crimes in the city occur throughout public housing communities. Aggravated assault accounted for a disproportionate 57% of all such crimes reported citywide.

The teen pregnancy rate is 44% and the number of households headed by a single female is 29%. Forty-four (44%) percent of households in the communities served have no resident with a high school diploma and the college graduation rate is a dismal two percent.

Program participants are male and female at-risk youths between the ages of 6 through 12 attending area Public Schools and who reside in the surrounding public-housing communities. Children benefit from the Chess Test Tutors Program in a variety of ways.

Participant’s show an increase in performance on standardize academic tests and an increase in positive psycho-social development (e.g., self-confidence, decision making skills, appropriate expression of feelings, conflict resolution, self-respect and respect for others).

They also show an increase in school engagement (e.g., attendance, classroom behavior, greater school readiness, and prevention of the increase of related issues such as school dropouts, and unemployment).

Our LearnStar has phenomenal programs developed for ESL students and parent. The GED module will be used to help the parents of the children in low-income neighborhoods get there high school education. LearnStar for Life, which includes life skills and a financial literacy component, will be used with both the children and their parents.