The development, implementation, and evaluation of a community-based tutorial-couseling program in a West End community in Houston, Texas

Recently, it has become increasingly apparent that human service institutions have failed, to provide needed, interventions to high-risk and underserved populations, (Rappaport, 1977). The purpose of this current intervention in a West End Community in Houston, Texas, was to supplement an underserved population. The intervention was based on a "strengths approach", (Rappaport, 1977), and attempted to address two primary goals: (1) To provide tutoring-counseling services to area adolescents. (This program aspect was designed to prevent school drop-outs.) (2) To assist with community development by involving the area youths in community projects. In order to assess the accomplishment of these goals, an evaluation was conducted. At the conclusion of the program, a more effective program evaluation was suggested. Feedback from the parents, teachers, and adolescents in the community, was of a positive nature-i.e. grades had improved, and parent-teacher-child relationships. It is recommended that the community intervention be continued, and that a more effective quantitative evaluation be attempted.