Developing a Culture of Resilience for Low-Income Immigrant Youth

This study explores a story of success at a school where low-income, English language learners (ELLs) comprise a majority of its students. In this paper, we examine Bay Academy's teaching and organizational practices that make it a place where youth feel they belong and can succeed. Central to this description is its culture of college, community- and family-involvement, and structural components including the leadership team and innovative programming. We approach this research from an ecological perspective of learning, and focus our analysis on the Academy's success in creating opportunities for students to develop academic resilience. We present our findings in an attempt to share the successes of this school as a model for educating students from similar backgrounds in similar contexts. © 2012 Springer Science+Business Media New York.