Statistics and Research

During the 2009-2010 school year, NAF Academies operate in 376 public high schools nationwide and serve 219 school districts in 40 states and the District of Columbia.

NAF supports a national network of:

• 243 Academies of Finance
• 95 Academies of Hospitality & Tourism
• 123 Academies of Information Technology  
• 29 Academies of Engineering

Research and evaluation confirm the effectiveness of NAF academies and the career-academy model: 

• More than 90 percent of NAF students graduate from high school—compared to 50% in the urban areas where most NAF Academies are located.
• Four out of five NAF students go on to college or other post-secondary education.
• Fifty-two percent of NAF graduates earn bachelor’s degrees in four years—compared with 32 percent nationally.
• Of those who go on to post-secondary education, more than half are the first in their families to go to college.
• Ninety percent of students report that the Academies helped them to develop career plans.
• Eighty-five percent of five- and ten-year alumni are working in a professional field.
• Career-academy graduates sustained $16,704 more in total earnings over the eight years following high school than non-Academy group members who were also studied—11 percent more per year.
• Young men from career-academies experienced increased earnings over eight years totaling $30,000 – 17 percent more per year than non-academy group members studied – thanks to a combination of increased wages, hours worked, and employment stability.
• An increased percentage of career-academy graduates live independently with children and a spouse or partner eight years following high school—young men, specifically, reported positive effects on marriage and parenting.

References:

Margaret Terry Orr, Thomas Bailey,  Katherine L. Hughes, Melinda Mechur Karp, and Gregory S. Kienzl. 2004. The National Academy Foundation’s Career Academie’s: Shaping Postsecondary Transitions. Institute on Education and the Economy, Teachers College, Columbia University.

James J. Kemple with Cynthia Willner. 2008. Career Academies: Long-Term Impacts on Labor Market Outcomes, Educational Attainment, and Transitions to Adulthood. MDRC.
 

View the MDRC news release regarding the study:

http://www.mdrc.org/press_releases/19/press_release_19.html