A Recognized Success

Since its inception in 1981, the Rite of Passage Experience^© initiative has proved effective in promoting youth development and leadership, in building a sense of community, and in increasing a community's capacities to collaborate on behalf of their children and teens. Over 100,000 youth and their families have participated in ROPE^® in both small towns and large cities across the United States and Canada.

The success of this initiative has been recognized by a number of national and regional organizations, including:

- Child Welfare League of America

- National League of Cities

- Connecticut Youth Services Association

- State of Connecticut Office of Policy & Management.

PROVEN EFFECTIVE

ROPE^® has also received consistently high evaluations from teens, parents/guardians and educators alike in research studies over the years. A review of 15 years of student and parent evaluations of ROPE^® revealed the following:

THE WORD FROM STUDENTS

• 86% of students ranked their overall enjoyment of ROPE^® as 4 or 5 on a scale of 1 to 5
• 94% thought all sixth graders should have a ROPE^® experience

THE WORD FROM PARENTS/GUARDIANS

• 68% of parents/guardians rated their children’s reactions to the program as 5 (very positive) on a scale of 1 to 5
• 75% stated ROPE^® increased their child’s self confidence
• 55% indicated that ROPE^® increased their child’s personal insights
• 58% declared that ROPE^® helped their child cope with the problems of adolescence
• 62% judged that ROPE^® will ease their child’s transition from sixth grade to middle school
• 83% ranked ROPE^® as “highly valuable” for their child
• 93% wanted ROPE^® to continue in their school

COMMUNITIES ALSO VALUE ROPE^®

A three-year study among ten different communities with ROPE^® initiatives found that 80% of those communities were continuing with their ROPE^® initiatives three years after state funding had expired. In that same study, the participants reported that ROPE^®:

• Served as a vehicle to mobilize and bring communities together on behalf of their children
• Offered children a healthy path to adulthood
• Gave adults in the community a viable and productive way to be helpful in the lives of their community's children
• Empowered communities to take responsibility for helping their children
• Increased the amount of money the community spent on children

To discover how ROPE^® can make a positive difference in your family, school, and community, please contact TheCenter@rope.org. Also, visit our Testimonials page to read what the community has said about their rites of passage experiences.