Overview of the Flagship Program
An After-School Program for Missoula, Montana

• The Flagship Program is a community-school partnership whose mission is to enhance the social, academic and cultural achievement of Missoula’s young people by creating opportunities for skill development, both in and out of school.
  
• In 1995, The Missoula Prevention Coalition began reviewing local and statewide data on young people. They were looking for ways to assist youth with their positive development and avoid high-risk behaviors that sometimes occur and block successful completion of school and/or progression to adulthood. They realized that schools alone could not meet all the social and development needs of young people.
  
• Research shows that the highest incidence of risk behavior occurs between 3 – 6 pm. Research also shows that significant adult relationships are critical to a child’s positive development. Best practices, including mentoring and skill development (social, cultural and academic) were adopted as core components to the Flagship Program.
  
• Flagship is based on collaboration among over twenty existing community “partner” agencies and organizations that bring their programs to the schools.
  
• At each Flagship school, Youth Development Coordinators work with principals to arrange, schedule, recruit for and oversee the after-school and summer programs. These coordinators also work with site teams made up of parents teachers, principals and students to determine what activities meet the needs of that particular school community.
  
• Examples of activities include tutoring, mentoring, skill development classes, sports, arts classes, conflict resolution groups, youth theater, job shadowing, community volunteer service and service learning projects. They also arrange for food and transportation for students to and from activities.
  
• All Flagship services and activities are provided free of cost to students. Having services at the school sites, not only allows populations of students (ie: low-income and at-risk) to participate, who may otherwise not have these services available, but also eliminates the barrier of transportation to community facilities.
  
• Flagship is currently in 9 Missoula MCPS District One schools. It operates in all four urban high schools, all three middle schools and two elementary schools.
  
• Last year, over 4,000 students participated in over 600 different Flagship activities. During that same period, 700 volunteers donated almost 14,000 hours of their time as part of Flagship.
  
• A professional research corporation recently completed a three-year study of after-school programs in six cities across the U.S., including Missoula Their research revealed that students who participated in the programs improved their school attitudes and behaviors, with 2/3 of the participants reporting that the programs helped them do better in school. Parents substantiated these responses. Participants also reported learning new skills and improved self-confidence. They engaged in fewer at-risk behaviors and strengthened their social networks by reportedly interacting better with adults and getting along better with their peers. Four Flagship schools are currently participating in a two year national study of promising after-school programs, financed by the Mott Foundation.
  
• The cost of Flagship, per school site, is approximately $50,000 per year. This includes salary for a school-based Youth Development Coordinator, as well as a site budget for transportation, supplies and food and some administrative costs associated with the program. These costs have been covered through a combination of private and public dollars from local, state and federal sources
  
• Flagship is a program of Turning Point, which is a legal subsidiary of the Western Montana Mental Health Center (501c3).