Vol. 1 no. 7 March/April 2006

Understanding Boys and Girls

Stephen M. Pratt, President

Dear Friends:

The publication of Carol Gilligan's In A Different Voice in 1982 ushered in an era of intense review of the unique challenges faced by girls in schools and in society as a whole. Fifteen years passed before her protégé, Michael Gurian, released The Wonder of Boys, which made an equally compelling case that boys were seriously threatened by changes in schools, workplaces, and families. The statistics support concerns about both sexes:

• The overall arrest rate for girls in Massachusetts tripled from 1991 to 2001, and a third more black girls than boys are recommitted to the DYS system.
• Across the country, more than half of black boys do not complete high school, and 60% of these dropouts will spend time in prison by age 30.
• Over the last 30 years, men's share of college enrollment has dropped from 58 to 44 percent, and women earn 60% of all Associates Degrees nationally.
• While the gap has narrowed, boys continue to outscore girls in mathematics and science in high school, despite the lack of a gender gap in earlier grades.
• Boys are dramatically more likely than girls to be diagnosed with ADHD, Autism, and other behaviorally based special education designations.
• Twice as many boys (59%) as girls (27%) played on a youth sports team in Boston last year.

So there is plenty of cause for alarm for all of our children, girls and boys alike. The conditions suggest a need for a stronger set of discrete programming options for boys and girls, and we would strongly support that view. However, we would also caution against a knee-jerk reaction opposing coeducation in schools or in the community. Obviously, boys and girls will grow into men and women who will work and live together. We need to ensure that we have gender-competent learning environments in all coed settings, and we also need to be sure that both boys and girls get opportunities to learn and explore in environments that celebrate their essential nature.

In this issue, we share some of the latest research on girls and boys programming and hear from practitioners and donors who are focusing their work on this issue. The topic of this newsletter rose out of a discussion we sponsored with OST professionals on issues that were of particular concern to them. In that spirit, we welcome your thoughts and reactions to what we expect will be a long-running dialogue.

On a personal note: Some of you know that I came into the after school world 19 years ago as a neighborhood center director with the Higher Acheivement Program, a nationally recognized academic enrichment model that taught me first-hand how after school programs can change the trajectory of a youth's life. Sadly, HAP's founder, Greg Gannon, passed away last week at the far too young age of 55. If you want to read about one of the true visionaries in this field, whose hard work and sacrifice made a difference for thousands of young people, click here.

Thanks for reading,