Program Areas | Youth Development

Boys & Girls Clubs: Three-Year Evaluation

In 2004, Metis completed a three-year evaluation of participants' experience in more than 350 Boys & Girls Clubs in eight states. The evaluation explored the relationship between members' participation in a Boys & Girls Club and outcomes related to alcohol, tobacco and other drugs; the members' attitudes about themselves, their peers, and relationships with adults; negative behaviors; school success; and health and fitness. The evaluation included an implementation study, a longitudinal study of member outcomes, a comparison study of those who attended high-school-based clubs with their non-member classmates, and case studies of selected clubs. For the implementation study, Metis developed Web-based surveys that were completed by Club directors. The surveys were geared toward describing the clubs, their members, activities offered—particularly those related to health, education and safety—and the context in which these activities are offered. Metis also developed a study of member outcomes that was completed over the Internet or in paper-and-pencil form by more than 7,000 youth.