Our Story

Born out of a year-long research project conducted by Purdue University student Jasmine Hsu, Level Up was designed as a response to social and behavioral skill deficiencies in children as a result of the digital age and the COVID-19 pandemic. During the lockdown, children lost a critical amount of time that is formative in social development, and our digital culture of instant gratification has led to important skills like patience not being adequately developed. Hsu set out to test whether the combination of pandemic-related social isolation and increased reliance on digital technology have led to a decrease in social learning, particularly among those age 12 and under. During the fall of 2022, Hsu spent 40+ hours observing and interacting with children in the third to fifth grade section of the After School Program at Lafayette Urban Ministry (LUM), a nonprofit in Lafayette, IN. Through this process, Hsu was able to observe palpable differences between children who had a healthy family life and those who did not. For example, female children with close relationships with their fathers performed much better in school and were able to regulate their emotions with more control than female children without close ties with their fathers. Also, the more crowded a child’s family (with siblings, step-siblings and step-parents), the more likely they were to act out and crave attention. Hsu realized that while the effects of the pandemic and technology certainly play major roles in shaping a child’s social skills, a child’s family is the most critical component in dictating emotional and behavioral tendencies. This realization was backed up by the work of Paul Tough in his book, "How Children Succeed," which states that family is the biggest influence on child success and development, citing stress (family trauma, lack of parental support, etc.) as the most harmful factor, even above poverty. Tough also argues that the primary indicators of future success aren’t cognitive abilities like IQ and grades, but non-cognitive abilities like resilience, self-control, and curiosity. This conclusion led Hsu to the second phase of her internship: finding mitigation strategies. While there was obviously nothing Hsu could do to affect each child’s family dynamics, she could create a mentorship program – pairing Purdue students with children from the After School Program to act as healthy role models and help improve their non-cognitive social skills. The mentors would meet weekly with their assigned child for an hour a week and complete a simple activity, the purpose of which would be to serve as a catalyst for introspection and deeper conversation. Even after just a short time, the new mentoring program showed positive connections developing and potentially shaping the children’s social development. The success of the mentorship demonstrated that by providing caring mentors and creating a safe space for social skill development, students can gain the tools they need to build stronger relationships, communicate more effectively, and better navigate social challenges.