By Yasmin Servara
Special to the AFRO
Ayrricka Street, a District of Columbia Public School student, has become a better student since joining the Capital Gains program. (Courtesy Photo)
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(Courtesy Photo)
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(November 4, 2009) - Like most teens, Ayrricka Street, 13, likes money. She also likes school, in part because that’s where the money is.
Ayrricka, a student at Kelly-Miller Middle School, is one of thousands of Washington public school children who are being paid to be successful students under a program called Capital Gains.
And according to Ayrricka, her mom, her teacher, a District of Columbia Public Schools principal and others, the program is paying off.
“I like the program very much,” said Ayrricka, an eighth-grader who has participated in Capital Gains since it began last year. “The program has helped me improve my grades, and makes the other students want to do better. It gives us something to look forward to.”
Capital Gains, which is entering its second year, pays students at 15 participating elementary and middle schools for doing well in class. School officials, who are still considering whether to extend it, think it might be the extra push some children need to succeed.
So far, more than 3,000 students are participating in the program, according to Safiya Simmons, assistant press secretary for the DCPS.
Simmons said it’s too early to tell how successful the program is for this academic year.
“This year, the program is operating a little differently in terms of components and how teachers are tracking,” she said.
Maybe so, but Ayrricka’s mother, Cynthia Street, said she has seen the change in her daughter, whose aspiration is to be a writer.
“I believe she is a little more determined to be successful academically, to turn in her homework,” Street said.
Street, a member of the Parent Teachers Association, said she and other parents like the program. When her daughter became sick, Street kept her home from school until she got better. The whole time, she said, Ayrricka was anxious to return back to school.
“She’s very aware of her attendance, and consistent with her behavior,” she said.
Brian Betts, principal at Shaw Middle School, said he has also seen improvement because of Capital Gains.
“Students are aware of their behavior, attendance has risen, and the data is showing a positive impact,” Betts said.
Charles Washington, a teacher at Kelly-Miller Middle School, said the program has encouraged some students to do the right thing.
Some students, however, are having difficulty with some parts of the education.
“It’s kind of an abstract idea for the kids,” Washington said. “I don’t think all of them really get how they earn the money.”
Some children are challenged with financial aspects of the program, he said.
“Going to the bank is so foreign for some of the kids and even their parents,” he said. “There are still a few kinks to work out.”
Capital Gains pays students based on behavior, grades and whether or not they wear their school uniforms. Students earn varying amounts based on how they meet the criteria. Arryicka said the most she has earned is $106.
The most obvious area of improvement is the increased number of students who wear their uniforms, Washington said.
Washington said he is still unsure of how he feels about paying students to do well. Some students remain unaffected by the program.
“Some kids still just don’t care,” he said. “There are so many issues in their personal lives that they don’t care. It’s more of a band-aid than a solution, but in theory, it’s a good idea.”
Some students who don’t care about the program want the money but don’t understand how to get it. Ayrricka said.
“Those students are in the halls,” she said. “They disrespect teachers and skip school. They settle for less than their best.”
Ayrricka is currently saving her money for college and for a Christmas gift to herself, a keyboard. She would like to attend Duke Ellington School of the Arts next school year.
Betts said the students are using their money for a wide variety of purchases, including buying gifts for the family for the holidays.
One student who lives outside of the school zone uses his money to pay for his monthly rail pass.
Another student, who had gotten into some trouble, uses his money to pay restitution.
And the others?
“Other students spend all of their money on clothes,” Ayrricka said.
Yasmin Servara is a writer with the Howard University News Service.