Knack Technologies, Inc.

PROJECT PURPOSE

According to data from the National Center for Education Statistics, Oklahoma public school enrollment had been on the rise every year since 2002. In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic prompted the first enrollment decline in nearly two decades for Oklahoma public schools. Moreover, a preliminary survey of Oklahoma's higher education institutions shows that college enrollment has fallen roughly two percent in fall 2021, when compared to fall 2020. To address the economic and societal impacts in the state of Oklahoma caused by the educational enrollment declines, Knack Technologies, Inc. proposes to build, launch, and grow a state-wide peer tutoring program focused on helping Oklahoma public school students get to college, help Oklahoma?s postsecondary students get through college, and finally, prepare Oklahoma students with the soft skills necessary to succeed in their careers for life after college.

EVIDENCE

None

POPULATION DESCRIPTION

In Education in a Pandemic: The Disparate Impacts of COVID-19 on America?s Students, the U.S. Department of Education outlined the effects COVID-19 is having on the education system across the country ? with a disproportionate amount of those effects being felt by historically marginalized or disadvantaged groups. The COVID-19 pandemic forced an unprecedented shift to remote instruction across our education system, magnifying inequities faced by first-generation and underrepresented minority (URM) students. It is assumed that there are significant disparities in remote learning that disproportionately impact URM and first-generation students. These students have significantly greater expectations to help siblings with remote learning; URM and first-generation students also suffered greater economic and food insecurity related to COVID-19. Given the targeted nature of how Knack?s peer tutoring programs can be designed, this project will be aimed at supporting all Oklahoma communities, with an emphasis on supporting populations identified as having the greatest disproportionate need.

PERFORMANCE MEASURING

Project performance can be measured by the number of students provided academic tutoring support, the number of jobs created for students in Oklahoma?s higher education system, as well as the number of professional development micro-credentials earned by participating tutors. This data is made readily available by the Knack platform. On a more granular level, activity data from students receiving academic support through this program can be shared with the institutions directly who can then better understand the direct impact of this program on academic outcomes.

ONGOING INVESTMENT AMOUNT

$

ONGOING INVESTMENT DESCRIPTION

None

ONGOING INVESTMENT REQUIRED

One-time project will not need continued funding