In 2006-07 24% of California high school students dropped out, and the data reveals disturbingly high drop-out rates for underserved populations such as Latinos and African-Americans. Therefore our CASA programs such as La Clase Mágica, Mi Clase Mágica, Wizard Assistant Club, La Gran Dimensión and others have historically worked diligently to close this scholastic gap in our service areas; and our research shows we are making strong progress, such as 90% of our past program participants who are college-age are either in college or some have already graduated! However as we further analyze the total wellbeing of the children and communities we serve it is becoming evident that this academic achievement gap is simply one of several inter-connecting barriers preventing the overall academic, social, health, and economic successes of these children and their families.

There are numerous issues to address and the challenges facing these communities are complicated, however we have targeted five specific areas in which we can improve total quality of life and better ensure future overall success for these children and adults. These areas are: Language and Culture, Digital Literacy, Financial Literacy, Health and Nutrition, and Environmental Protection.

Therefore we are transforming our current five after-school sites into hubs of expertise in these critical areas. Building on our current CASA Programs design, we will continue to serve minority and low-income children and adults in relevant community epicenters such as low-income housing complexes and American Indian Reservations. Each site will still be headed by a collaborative team consisting of bilingual community members and a diverse array of college research students, and we will continue to use a technology-based culturally relevant curriculum to meet new objectives such as: 100% of participants will be able to create at least one form of digital mass media.