Learning

Children who face extreme stressors like poverty, unstable home environments, family or community trauma, homelessness and hunger often display disruptive behaviors that set them back academically and prevent them from achieving in school. TOPPS provides the most vulnerable K-12 children and youth in our community with a safe haven where they can receive support, tutoring, resources and other tools that will help them succeed academically, emotionally, financially and physically. Over 2,000 youth and their families have benefitted from our innovative programs which focus on producing academic success, life and leadership skills and a passion for community service.

 

For more information, please contact Director of After School Jordan Sims at jsims@topps.org.

Little TOPPS

The nickname for our first location, Little TOPPS is a small house that hosts our K-3 after-school program. About 30 children receive homework help, math and reading tutoring and a healthy dinner and snack throughout the school week. Considered one of our premier programs, Little TOPPS helps new learners maintain good grades, behavior, and test scores. The program operates Monday-Thursday from 3pm to 5:30pm. Transportation is provided from local schools to our headquarters and Little TOPPS locations.

OUTCOME: Only 25% of students entering the Little TOPPS program are performing at grade level; one year later, 75% of students were meeting or exceeding state standards in math, reading and writing.

Teen Center

Jefferson County teens face many dire challenges but fewer than 1 in 12 will participate in supportive after-school programs that can keep them on track for success. TOPPS offers students in grades 4-12 a modern Community Learning Center where 150 youth receive healthy meals and after-school learning support such as help with homework or tutoring in advanced subjects such as algebra, geometry, calculus and chemistry. The TOPPS Teen Center is open Monday-Thursday 3:30 pm to 5:30 pm and Sunday 2 pm to 6 pm.

OUTCOME: Our teen robotics team, TOPPS Tech, placed as Rookie of the Year in 2017 in a regional competition that included 3,000 students.

Dreams

About one-third of high school students in Pine Bluff, won’t graduate from high school. DREAMS (Dreams Require Educating and Motivating Students) is our college enrichment program that helps economically disadvantaged students gain the tools, skills and confidence they need to graduate from high school and enroll in college. Students in grades 10-12 meet twice a month to work on college prep materials and participate in activities that inform them about the college admission process, financial aid, college life and career planning. Students work with mentors during the week, are required to perform 50 hours of community service annually, and have opportunities to attend in-state and out-of-state college tours and other travel. In the past, our kids have traveled to several international locations, including Africa, Mexico, London and Paris.

OUTCOME: One hundred percent of the 157 students who have participated in our DREAMS program over the past nine years have graduated from high school; 98% were accepted into college and 2% joined the military.

Summer Learning

A leading cause of the academic achievement gap between low-income children and their more privileged counterparts is unequal access to summer school. TOPPS offers a robust Summer Learning Program that helps disadvantaged children retain information learned during the school year and prepares them for the year ahead. Students participate in fun academic activities in math, reading, science and public speaking; they engage in enrichment programs such as robotics, sewing and CPR; and they attend field trips that include visits to local farms and outdoor activities such as canoeing, fishing and archery.

OUTCOME: Open to students in grades K-12, TOPPS Summer Learning Program conducts educational assessments at the beginning and end of the summer and individualized education plans to support academic achievement year-round.

Youth Mentoring

To help deter young people from risky behaviors and prepare them to succeed, TOPPS has a youth mentoring program that connects responsible adults with girls and boys ages 8-18. Since 2006, more than 1,800 youth throughout Pine Bluff and Jefferson County have participated in our mentoring programs, which focus on core values such as Academic Achievement, Self-Respect, Leadership and Community Service. Through partnerships with a local credit union and university STEM program, TOPPS can offer students workshops in economics and money management as well as science and technology.

OUTCOME: TOPPS provides over 57,000 mentoring sessions to about 150  youth annually. More than 90% of our students improved their ACT college entrance scores.