Project GRAD is a comprehensive, cost-effective program with a record of improving the academic achievement of students from low-income backgrounds. On average, Project GRAD costs approximately 5 to 7 percent of the annual per-student spending in the public schools where implemented. By focusing on a carefully selected set of high impact interventions, the Project GRAD program has been designed from the outset to produce significant results cost effectively.

A focus on cost effectiveness is critical for a number of reasons. First, to achieve systemic improvements in academic achievement requires a broad set of components that span Kindergarten through 12th grade. Second, once GRAD proves to be effective, it will be widely replicated. 

The Five Structural Components

Project GRAD’s integrated approach to teaching and learning hinges on the five pillars of its structural approach. It is this unique structural approach that contributes to higher academic standards and offers the dream of graduation and college to all the students it serves. GRAD’s  theory of change asserts that education reform efforts should improve approaches to the teaching of basic skills and a strong academic program. These, in turn, should be implemented via a structure that has the potential to lead to sustainable systemic change. The five structural components work hand in hand with the five program components to ensure Project GRAD's success in a feeder.

The Five Program Components

GRAD implements its five core programs in all the schools in a feeder and provides the resources necessary to help the existing teacher corps become proficient in their execution. GRAD requires that the staff of all schools in a feeder vote to adopt, be trained in, and implement the same approaches to the teaching of reading, mathematics, and classroom management in all schools at all grade levels. This contributes to a comprehensive and coherent educational experience for all students as they move from grade to grade and from school to school—even horizontally across elementary or middle schools. Through the implementation of its program or curricular components, GRAD provides a core of basic skills that becomes the platform for high academic standards on which schools can build challenging curricula in the humanities, science, technology, the social sciences, and the arts.