Across the country, communities in the StriveTogether Cradle to Career Network are working to put more young people on a path to economic mobility by addressing barriers to equitable outcomes. StriveTogether’s seven cradle-to-career outcome areas are critical milestones that shape a child’s educational journey and future success. Each post in this series will provide an in-depth look at one of these key areas, highlighting the challenges, opportunities, and impactful strategies that can drive positive change.
Compared to 2019 pre-pandemic scores, math proficiency nationally dropped in 2022 by five percentage points for fourth grade and an unprecedented seven percentage points for eighth grade. The pandemic additionally increased inequities in academic outcomes across most racial and ethnic groups.
These numbers are particularly staggering because research shows that middle-grade math is a predictor of high school graduation. Achievement in eighth-grade math is also associated with later life outcomes such as income, educational attainment, declines in teen motherhood, incarceration, and arrest rates. According to the Center for Policy Research at Harvard, “Recent losses…represent a 1.6% decline in present value of lifetime earnings for the average K-12 student (or $19,400), totaling $900 billion for the 48 million students enrolled in public schools during the 2020-21 school year.”
In Texas, two Cradle to Career Network members — E3 Alliance and The Commit Partnership — are improving middle-grade math outcomes by shifting practices and policies, from the local to the state level. Their dedicated efforts showcase the importance of targeted strategies, data analysis, and community involvement in shaping the future of students, particularly those from historically underserved communities.
E3 Alliance | Central Texas
In Central Texas, E3 Alliance got buy-in on prioritizing math attainment by making the national numbers relevant to their local context. According to their research, young adults in Central Texas without a certification, credential, or degree within six years of leaving high school have just a 12% chance of earning a living wage.
To address the steep declines in advanced math course completion — and the existing racial and ethnic inequities in those pathways — E3 Alliance and their central Texas partners worked to reverse the local opt-in approach. Instead of letting students choose whether to enroll in advanced math courses, the new policy automatically enrolls qualifying students. Students can then choose to opt out, but by shifting cultural perceptions around math, more students are engaging in high-quality curriculum that is preparing them for future success.
This policy shift significantly increased completion of advanced math courses and closed opportunity gaps. Their work has shown impressive results, including a 91% reduction in the gap between Black and white students completing eighth-grade Algebra I and a six-fold increase in emergent bilingual students completing the course.
Their partnership has kept community voice centered throughout this work. E3 Alliance incorporates youth and family perspectives through interviews, focus groups, and empathy interviews conducted by trained partners. This qualitative data helps understand the issues from the students’ and families’ viewpoints and allows for the creation of sustainable systems-level solutions.
These collective efforts have further led to policy shifts at the state level. Their advocacy was instrumental in the adoption of a statewide opt-out policy for middle school advanced math, Senate Bill 2124, ensuring that more students have access to the coursework necessary for postsecondary success. This policy change is now benefiting communities across Texas, proving that strategic, data-informed interventions can drive systemic change.
The Commit Partnership | Dallas, Texas
With support from the E3 Alliance, The Commit Partnership shares analysis with Dallas County districts, highlighting the long-term outcomes of students based on their access to advanced math courses. This data helps districts understand which students are accessing advanced math pathways and where improvements are needed.
This data also led to Dallas Independent School District’s shift to an opt-out model for advanced math courses, influenced by the recent passage of SB 2124. Before the policy change, only 32% of fifth-grade students who met state math standards enrolled in honors math in sixth grade, with particularly low representation among Black and emergent bilingual students. Now, three years after implementing the new policy, 94% of students who met grade-level standards in fifth-grade math are enrolled in sixth-grade honors math classes, with Black and emergent bilingual students represented in nearly equal proportion.
Despite the pandemic’s challenges, Dallas County saw an increase in the percentage of third through eighth-grade students meeting math standards in 2023, up to 39% compared to 34% in 2022. Although recovery from pandemic-related learning losses is ongoing, these early results are encouraging. 
Commit also values the perspectives of youth and families in their middle-grade math work. The Math Directors Working Group encourages collecting and assessing both quantitative and qualitative data on the experiences of students and families. This approach ensures that strategy development and continuous improvement efforts are informed by those directly impacted.
E3 Alliance and The Commit Partnership demonstrate the power of data-driven, community-focused strategies to improve middle-grade math outcomes. By addressing equity gaps, implementing comprehensive policies, and centering community perspectives, these organizations are paving the way for a brighter future for Texas students.
Middle-grade math is one of the seven key outcome areas addressed by the Network — all critical steps on the path to economic mobility. Learn more about the importance of this outcome area in the StriveTogether cradle-to-career outcome guide, here.
