Indigo Overview

Providing educators with the non-academic data necessary to increase student success

Indigo Vision

• An education system that addresses the whole child.

• Students who are engaged in their own education process.

• Educators who are empowered to do what they do best passionately.

• Parents who are equipped to co-design an educational experience aligning with their child’s strengths.

To realize this vision, we measure, integrate, and develop 21st century skills, helping prepare all students for rewarding lives

and careers.

How Indigo Started

As an entrepreneur and corporate consultant, Indigo founder Sheri Smith saw a need for educational systems that prepare students for meaningful careers in areas of their unique strengths and passions.

With the help of industry leader in corporate assessment technologies Target Training International, Smith adapted their sophisticated assessment tool for use with students 9th grade and older.

The Indigo Assessment measures over 100 data points that define non-academic factors impacting students’ ability to learn and succeed in life. The tool also indicates social-emotional health, which is important in a society where more than 1 in 6 students are depressed or considering suicide.

Indigo was founded in 2013 by Sheri Smith, M.A.

• The Indigo Education Company is a for-profit social enterprise founded in 2013.

• The Indigo Foundation is a non-profit 501c3 founded in 2014 to make Indigo accessible for all.

What you can do with the Indigo Assessment

1. Aggregate and analyze data.

2. Identify students needing social-emotional support.

3. Develop college and career preparedness through a job-readiness curriculum.

4. Integrate with counselors and Response to Intervention (RTIs).

5. Train teachers and co-create personalized learning strategies.

We are currently working with:

• 5 charter schools

• 4 private schools

• 4 public schools• 3 at-risk youth

organizations

• Pilots in 6 universities

• 3 non-traditional/vocational post secondary programs

Indigo Assessment ComponentsMotivators Behaviors Skills

Motivators are like an engine beneath the hood of a car – they aren't easily seen from the outside but are what power you. Motivators correlate directly to fulfillment and meaning. Understanding motivators is critical for student engagement.

23 skills that are important in the world of work. Students have greater potential in areas where they have natural talent. Skills at the top are the ones that come more naturally, thus requiring less energy. Skills at the bottom require more energy but can be learned over time.

The graphs represent behavioral styles based on the DISC model. D stands for Dominance; I is Influencing; S is Steadiness; C is Compliance. The graph on the right represents natural style and the one on the left represents adapted style. Large differences indicate stress.

*Social-Emotional Metrics are not reported to students, only authorized staff. See addendum for more information on social-emotional data points.

Case Study: High Performing Charter School

This high-performing charter school conducted a full-school implementation of Indigo involving all students and faculty, funded by a CO Dept. of Education grant. In response to the data, the school initiated two intervention groups, hosted 4 mandatory parent nights, revamped their approach to college preparedness and RTI’s, and implemented new curricula. Ongoing classroom integration is in progress.

Case Study: High Performing Charter School

Case Study: Low-Income Charter School

Dominance Influencing Steadiness Compliance3.5

4.0

4.5

5.0

5.5

6.0

6.5

Behaviors, girls vs boys

Females Males

School population 95% Hispanic, 98% eligible for free and reduced lunch. Educators integrated Indigo with ICAP advising periods to promote self-awareness and communication through 1-on-1 counseling sessions. Continued interventions in progress.

Due to the extremely low Dominance scores and high Social motivation (desire to help others) of female students, Indigo recommended increased leadership opportunities, especially in the area of community service.

Case Study: ComparisonsSkill gaps between the low-income school and the comparative suburban school were stark. Low-income students scored almost a full standard deviation below suburban peers.

Social-emotional data revealed twice as many “at-risk” students at low-income school.

Resiliency has long been on educators’ radar as a critical life skill, and Indigo’s data shows serious gaps between suburban and low-income students. Lack of resiliency among low-income students may explain low college persistence rates.

Conclusions from Previous Implementations

1. At each school, Indigo identified critical job-preparedness skills in need of development.

2. Nearly 20% of students are showing low internal social-emotional scores, indicating the need for some type of intervention.

3. Students placed in intervention groups demonstrated increased social-emotional scores and higher grades in classes.

4. 60% of teachers requested additional data and curriculum suggestions to customize learning based on students’ motivators and non-academic skills.

5. The Indigo Student Report engages students and integrates well with college and career preparedness curricula based on state-mandated ICAP requirements.

6. Educators overwhelmingly support non-academic skill development and curriculum enhancement, yet resources and time are constrained.

7. Given the enthusiastic reception and observable impact of Indigo data analysis, greater data collection is necessary to inform policy makers on a broader scale.

How large data studies helpIndividual school data can:

• Identify students with social-emotional needs• Develop curricula to enhance interventions• Generate Indigo Reports and workshops for all students• Train teachers and administrators to understand and

implement data• Provide sophisticated data analytics with school-specific

observations

Aggregated data from a multi-school study can:

• Identify job-related skills in need of development across education systems

• Determine which learning methodologies (pedagogies) effectively cultivate certain skills

• Equip public, local, state, and possibly national policy-makers with data never before measured in schools

• Promote the importance of non-academic skills in the academic community and publish findings to encourage broader application

Typical Indigo implementation process

Note: Data collection can be done quickly, requiring very little time from high school staff. The assessment takes 45 minutes online, and reports are automatically emailed to students and/or staff. It is also low cost at approx. $50 per student, all-inclusive.

1. Student and/or teacher participants take the Indigo Assessment online, about 45 min.

2. Indigo staff identifies at-risk students and analyzes school's unique data.

3. Key stakeholders meet to review data and discuss next steps.

4. Indigo staff conducts professional development training and provides curriculum for desired interventions.

5. Indigo reviews with administration to check progress.

6. In some cases, the skills and social-emotional portions of the assessment are re-administered several months later to measure growth.