College Readiness 101
TFS’ Middle School Program incorporates a wide variety of college and career curriculum components and capitalizes on a rich array of partners, field experiences, and college interactions. Students explore topics using online forums, career exploration trips, college tours, and service-oriented trips, all while developing leadership skills. In an effort to prepare them for college, students […]
Happy Independence Day!
On This Fourth of July The Fishing School wishes a HAPPY BIRTHDAY! To the American Dream. “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” – United States Declaration […]
Maintain and Sustain
TFS was founded in 1990 and initially served five students. It now serves over 400 youth daily, operates embedded programs at four schools, runs in-depth summer and school year programs, and is building out its Middle School and Parent Engagement Programs to extend its impact. Since 2008, the annual operating budget has grown from $838,784 […]
Innovative Upgrades from Microsoft
TFS is proud to partner with Microsoft to introduce new innovative technology to youth in Wards 7 and 8 in the District. This video shows TFS staff receiving training on a variety of new technology at the Microsoft store in Tysons Corner, Virginia! TFS leverages corporate and community partners to support programmatic elements, assist with school-wide goals […]
Social Media Day
Today, June 30, is Social Media Day! Social Media Day was launched by Mashable as a way to recognize and celebrate social media’s impact on global communication. Today, social media is the heart of global communication; and since its inception, organizations and individuals worldwide have been using social media to spread awareness to a variety of […]
Staying on Target
The Fishing School targets all 1st through 5th grade students enrolled in Title 1 eligible elementary schools throughout D.C., but has strategically partnered with schools in Wards 7 and 8 to help ensure that students in DC’s most underserved communities have equal access to high quality education. Research indicates that low socio-economic status, poverty, race, […]
Persistence, Past and Present
In 1990, Tom Lewis, a former Metropolitan Police Department officer, opened The Fishing School in a renovated, former crack house on Wylie Street, NE, once named the “worst street in America.” As an MPD Officer, he met countless students whose families had been affected by drug use, poverty, and incarceration. Growing up as one of […]
Meeting Needs
TFS’ programmatic model addresses clear societal needs and is based on experience and sound research about the status of education and personal achievement among underserved communities. Through our findings, we realized three paramount areas of need among children and parents: Reading and math performance scores in DC are amongst the lowest in the nation. Research […]
Parent Engagement
In TFS’ Parent Engagement Program, parents participate in year-round activities and events designed to increase their knowledge and skills of youth development and empower them to make use of best practices. TFS works to promote trust, open communication, and parent stewardship of their child’s academic career. We connect with parents through family events, advisory committees, […]
The Cohort Model
The core of TFS’ approach is the Cohort Model, a two-generational continuous commitment to children and their parents from 1st through 8th grades in which students are grouped into “cohorts” upon enrollment and progress through a multiyear program continuum together. We began serving 6th grade students in our Middle School pilot program in the fall […]
