AVID is a program that’s been helping public school students unlock their potential for more than 40 years. Its longevity is a tribute in part to its effectiveness and in part to its response to the evolving needs of students.

The acronym stands for Achievement Via Individual Determination, and VCS AVID District Director Dr. Destiny Ross-Putney said today’s program focuses not just on college-bound students, but post-secondary pursuits that include work after high school.

Putney calls it “post-secondary readiness,” whether students are college-bound or head right into a career.

A typical AVID student is a student who has a GPA between 2.0 and 3.5. “It’s not for your typical high-flying student,” but rather for students who have the potential to be more successful with just a little bit more structured support in the classroom, Ross-Putney said.

“Some students are simply not interested in college,” she said, but AVID prepares students for life after high school graduation, whether it’s college or work. AVID teaches students how to be truly prepared to be active citizens in the community.

Three Vance County Schools have AVID programs – Vance County Middle School, Vance County High School and, new this year, Carver Elementary. There are about 70 middle school students at each grade level that participate in AVID, and there’s an elective class at the high school, Ross-Putney said. VCHS is a schoolwide AVID school, she added, which means that faculty use AVID techniques and strategies in their classrooms.

The third- and fifth graders at Carver are getting their first taste of AVID, Ross-Putney said. The plan is to introduce AVID in other elementary schools in the district.

The district also has professional development to share with teachers’ various AVID strategies, which include things like how to take good notes, create resumes, and effective interview techniques.

There’s a focus on writing with AVID, and teachers use the WICOR strategy to help students: WICOR stands for Writing, Inquiry, Collaboration, Organization and Reading.

AVID helps students develop self-confidence and self-advocacy, she said. “I can see how confident students are,” when she visits AVID classrooms. “They are specifically taught how to have a discourse,” she said, which increase students’ “abilities to communicate as well as withstand rigorous course work.”

And AVID also keep track of students after graduation – it’s a built-in component of the program to check in one year and three years after graduation.

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