SEARCH FOR RESOURCES
The Urban Institute created this fact sheet to provide a summary of previous research on changing subsidy policies and procedures. It spells out seven ways states can make child care more accessible and equitable for families and more efficient for agencies. This resource supports equity.
This issue brief by Temescal Associates and How Kids Learn Foundation explores how involving youth as OST workers provides opportunities to advance youth in their development, and to develop their leadership and career skills by serving as tutors, mentors, and activity assistants. The brief reviews the benefits of employing youth in afterschool programs and how youth perceive this work benefits them, as well as recommendations for policymakers. An associated webinar from October 2021 can be accessed here: Engaging Youth as Workers in Afterschool. Another webinar from June 2023 on this topic includes efforts in Philadelphia and through the California Afterschool Network on providing high school youth jobs in afterschool and summer park programs, and as lifeguards. It can be found here: Employing Youth and Workforce Development in Afterschool.
This issue brief, by the Bipartisan Policy Center, outlines how registered apprenticeships can serve as an innovative model to strengthen the workforce by combining classroom instruction with on-the-job training and mentoring to create an earn-while-you-learn approach. It highlights examples from WV, PA, and CO and provides recommendations for state and community leaders and philanthropy organizations on how to move the strategy forward.
This guide, by the Oregon Department of Education, offers an inspiring vision for summer learning in the post-pandemic world, prioritizing those most in need. It includes a focus on mental health and well-being and providing learning opportunities that can ignite and renew engagement, foster learning, and nourish in-person connections. It also includes information on state and federal funding streams.
This guide, published by The Partnership for Children and Youth and the National Summer Learning Association is designed to support education leaders with summer planning. It includes foundational research, best practices, and sections on core values, laying the groundwork for success, research on quality, and road blocks to remove on funding and policies. The guide includes practice tips, case studies, and three pages of resources.
The National Center on Afterschool and Summer Enrichment (NCASE) has developed a number of resources focused on addressing equity in Out-of-School Time. This publication is part of a series compiling NCASE resources on a particular theme for the benefit of state, territory, and Tribal Lead Agencies and their designated networks. The goal is to promote professional development and capacity building. In addition to links to relevant resources, it includes questions to support reflection and the development of action plans.
This toolkit was designed as a learning resource to enhance opportunities to support mental and social-emotional health for children and adolescents in afterschool programs. It includes: (1) an overview of emotions and behaviors seen in youth; (2) definitions and descriptions of common mental disorders; (3) signs and symptoms of crisis in youth; and (4) resources for managing challenging behaviors and accessing supports.
This blog points out that there is a clear need to invest in and expand early care and education programs that serve Native American children and families. Federal law often sets funding levels as a percentage of total authorization without determining funding based on tribal populations or needs that reflect disproportionately higher unemployment and poverty.
Based on a survey of parents or guardians of school-aged children living in a rural community, this blog provides insights into the current afterschool and summer program landscape in rural America, in particular the significant and rising unmet demand in rural communities. It compares and contrasts the experience of rural parents to their non-rural counterparts. The full report can be found at https://www.afterschoolalliance.org/documents/AA3PM/AA3PM-Rural-Report-2021.pdf?utm_source=AfterschoolSnack&utm_medium=blog&utm_campaign=AA3PM_Rural&utm_term=Walton
This report chronicles the efforts of four cities—Boston, Dallas, Pittsburgh, and Washington, DC—to expand summer program opportunities for low-income students. It examines district-led efforts toward creating coordinated approaches to increasing access to quality summer learning, noting challenges, enablers, and early outcomes. It notes how the partners developed a shared vision and strong leadership, coordinated their work, raised funds to sustain the work, and collected and analyzed diagnostic data to gauge their progress. It includes recommendations to help other cities launch and sustain coordinated networks.