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Archive for the ‘Resources’ Category

Submit Info for AZ Daily Star Afterschool Program List

Posted in Advocacy, Resources on July 13, 2009| Leave a Comment »

Tucson, Arizona | Published: 07.12.2009 http://www.azstarnet.com/allheadlines/300449

There goes time — flying again.

Which is another way of telling schools and organizations that provide activities for kids that it’s time to submit their information to the Star’s Kids’ Afterschool Programs listings.

The Star will provide those listings to the public beginning July 20. Submissions should be made by Wednesday.

This year, the listings will be carried online only, but they also will be available throughout the school year. And schools and sponsoring organizations may update their listings on azstarnet.com at any time.

Azstarnet’s software now allows anyone submitting information to view what they’ve written and to edit it.

The Star will do no editing. So the responsibility for listings’ accuracy lies with those who submit the information.

The really good news, however, is that new submissions may be added throughout the school year.

To make a submission, go to programs.azstarnet.com. (Note: there is no “www” in the Web address.) We’ll cue you from there.

For more information, contact Linda Velazquez, 573-4133, or Rosalie Crowe, 573-4105.

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Measurement Tools for Evaluating Out-of-School Time Programs: An Evaluation Resource

Posted in Resources on June 27, 2009| Leave a Comment »

Originally released in 2005 and updated last year, this is one of our most popular resources for out-of-school time practitioners seeking help conducting evaluations. It describes instruments and tools that practitioners can obtain and use for on-the-ground program evaluation.

http://www.hfrp.org/publications-resources/browse-our-publications/measurement-tools-for-evaluating-out-of-school-time-programs-an-evaluation-resource for downloadable .pdf

Harvard Family Research Project
http://www.hfrp.org/

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New from CANFIT.org: Expanding Opportunities for After School Physical Activity

Posted in Research, Resources on June 27, 2009| Leave a Comment »

This policy brief presents recommendations from the Youth Activity Policy (YAP) project funded by Kaiser Permanente, Northern California Regions Healthy Eating Active Living Initiative. The brief examines the neighborhood structures that are already serving youth and assesses how they might become engaged in community health initiatives that strengthen or expand physical activity opportunities for young people. Eight recommendations are outlined for this process.
To download go to:

Click to access CANFITExpandingASOpportunities.pdf

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Excerpt from Johns Hopkins’ National Center for Summer Learning: White House Initiative Can Help You to Tap Into Volunteering This Summer

Posted in Resources on June 27, 2009| Leave a Comment »

On May 20, Center Executive Director Ron Fairchild attended a meeting led by First Lady Michelle Obama and the Corporation for National and Community Service. At the meeting, the First Lady announced a new national summer of service initiative that is designed to connect volunteers with non-profit organizations this summer.

As part of this initiative, the Administration has launched a new online portal, www.serve.gov, where organizations can list service opportunities and individuals can find openings of interest or develop their own projects.  Organizations are strongly encouraged to post volunteer opportunities to www.serve.gov as soon as possible so people who answer President Obama’s call to service next week will be able to find opportunities to get involved.

This service effort will focus on four broad issues: 1) promoting clean energy, energy efficiency, and public land restoration; 2) supporting education and literacy for all Americans; 3) increasing health care access, public health awareness, and prevention; and 4) providing community renewal to areas hardest hit by the economic crisis.  All of these issues–particularly education and literacy– provide a wonderful opportunity for summer learning programs to secure additional volunteers and highlight the importance of summer programs in reducing summer learning loss and sending kids back to school ready to learn.

The initiative will officially begin June 22 at the National Conference on Volunteering and Service and culminate in a National Day of Service and Remembrance on September 11.

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From Child Trends: Implementing High-Quality Youth Programs

Posted in Research, Resources on June 27, 2009| Leave a Comment »

Three new Child Trends briefs present research findings and effective strategies to implement high-quality out-of-school time programs.  These briefs complete a six-part series on the drivers for implementing evidence-based practices in out-of-school time programs, available at www.childtrends.org/youthdevelopment.

How Program Administrators Can Support Out-Of-School Time Staff
Research on out-of-school time programs has found that effective program managers-referred to as facilitative administrators-promote high-quality implementation in multiple ways: by providing organizational leadership; selecting program staff; ensuring that staff receive training and supervision; and identifying and addressing implementation problems. This brief presents effective strategies for facilitative administration in out-of-school time programs.

http://www.childtrends.org/Files//Child_Trends-2009_06_23_RB_FaciliteAdm
in.pdf

<http://www.childtrends.org/Files/Child_Trends-2009_06_23_RB_FaciliteAdm
in.pdf>

Building Systems-Level Partnerships
Partnerships among out-of-school time programs, schools, and the community have been recognized as a feature of high-performing programs. In addition, systems-level partnerships can play critical roles when programs decide to implement new evidence-based practices or activities. This brief links research findings to effective strategies for building systems-level partnerships in out-of-school time programs.

http://www.childtrends.org/Files//Child_Trends-2009_06_23_RB_SystemsPart
ners.pdf

<http://www.childtrends.org/Files/Child_Trends-2009_06_23_RB_SystemsPart
ners.pdf>

Data-Driven Decision Making in Out-Of-School Time Programs
The use of high-quality data facilitates program management, reduces reliance on anecdotal information, and ensures that data are available for decision-making purposes. Both research and program experience have shown that decision-support data systems are effective tools for gathering high-quality data.  This brief offers recommendations and action steps to support the use of high-quality data to inform the implementation of evidence-based practices. 

http://www.childtrends.org/Files//Child_Trends-2009_06_23_RB_Decision-Su
pport.pdf

<http://www.childtrends.org/Files/Child_Trends-2009_06_23_RB_Decision-Su
pport.pdf>

RELATED WORK FROM CHILD TRENDS:
Strategies for the Effective Implementation of Evidence-Based Practices in Out-of-School Time Programs, Part 1 (PowerPoint presentation PDF)

http://www.childtrends.org/Files//ProgImp1to3.pdf
<http://www.childtrends.org/Files/ProgImp1to3.pdf>

Strategies for the Effective Implementation of Evidence-Based Practices in Out-of-School Time Programs, Part 2 (PowerPoint presentation PDF)

http://www.childtrends.org/Files//ProgImp4to6.pdf
<http://www.childtrends.org/Files/ProgImp4to6.pdf>

Child Trends is a nonprofit, nonpartisan research center that studies children at all stages of development.

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Expanded Learning Time: the New Normal – from TASC

Posted in Advocacy, Resources on June 10, 2009| Leave a Comment »

June 3, 2009
Visit the TASC Web site http://www.tascorp.org/content/blog/detail/2463  for New York Nonprofit Press piece as a PDF.

Dear Friends,
A year ago, TASC joined with the New York City Department of Education and the Department of Youth and Community Development to expand learning time by at least 30 percent for students in 10 New York City public schools. With Year One of the Expanded Learning Time/New York City pilot coming to a close, now we see what it looks like on the ground when schools and community-based organizations truly partner to expand learning – sharing the funding 50/50, forming one enriched and ambitious school culture under the principal’s leadership, and collaborating on everything from curriculum to parent outreach across the 3 PM dividing line. It looks like the smoothly aligned day — with rigor and purpose in the creative activities — that is the long-standing goal of so many in the after-school field.

I hope you’ll find value in this essay recently published in New York Nonprofit Press   http://nynp.biz/index.php/points-of-view/918-a-year-of-lessons-from-expanded-learning-time  and that you will join TASC in our efforts to expand learning time for more kids and schools, using all available resources from federal stimulus funds to private grants. Please be in touch with your thoughts or questions.

Warmest regards,

The After-School Corporation
info@tascorp.org

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New Marketing Tool Available For Arizona Afterschool Programs

Posted in Resources, tagged , on June 9, 2009| Leave a Comment »

The Arizona Center for Afterschool Excellence in collaboration with the Arizona statewide Youth Development Task Force is proud to announce the creation of the Arizona Afterschool Map, a web based, afterschool map and directory designed to be an invaluable tool for all Arizona afterschool providers.

 This, first of its kind, Arizona afterschool mapping project allows all afterschool programs, large AND small, non-profit AND for profit, licensed AND licensed exempt, to log on to http://azafterschool.test.gatesix.com and click on Afterschool Directory to easily enter the data requested regarding their program.  There is no charge for including your program or programs on the Arizona Afterschool Map.   It takes only a few minutes to enter program details and programs with multiple sites have the capability to enter each site individually.   The afterschool map also allows afterschool providers with summer programs to list the details of their summer programs separately.

 If you find your program is already listed in the directory, please confirm the accuracy of information listed because the data found was initially imported to the design test site months ago and may no longer be accurate.

 Once the site is populated with programs from across the state, hopefully within the next 30 days, , the site will be launched and promoted to the public in time for parents to make informed decisions before enrolling their children in afterschool programs for the fall.

 Parents looking for afterschool programs for their children will be able to log onto the site, enter their home address and search for all programs operating within three, five or fifteen miles from the address entered.  All programs within the geographic radius selected will then pop up and parents can then click on individual program names to see the full details regarding the programs in their area. 

 If you have any questions or need additional information about this incredible, new afterschool tool, please call the Arizona Center for Afterschool Excellence at 602.279.7100.

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New Searchable Website of Assessment Tools for Informal Science Learning

Posted in Resources, tagged , on June 9, 2009| Leave a Comment »

A new resource designed to help practitioners, evaluators, researchers and policymakers select instruments to assess science learning and child outcomes in out-of-school programs is now available.  PEAR, a Harvard University-McLean Hospital team led by Dr. Gil Noam, has developed a searchable database of assessment tools for evaluating program quality and outcomes.

Afterschool programs are gaining recognition as settings that hold great potential for increasing scientific literacy and engagement in youth.  Yet some questions remain:  How do we know when afterschool programs achieve their goals?  What evaluative tools should we use when assessing afterschool science programs?  How can we be sure the evaluative tools we use are valid and reliable — are they appropriately measuring science programming and outcomes?

Evaluating afterschool science programming is essential for ensuring and improving the quality of informal science experiences for youth.  Sites that assess science programming are also better positioned to gain additional resources and are more attractive to funders and potential partners.  The Noyce Foundation, a leading strategic funder in the afterschool science field, requisitioned a yearlong study on the current state and needs of the informal science assessment world. The design for the PEAR study is based on an evaluative framework developed in a recent National Science Foundation report by Alan J. Friedman, David A. Ucko and committee. The PEAR study yielded an in-depth, analytical review of existing evaluation tools.  Results are documented in a report “Toward a Systemic Evidence-Base for Science in Out-of-School Time: The Role of Assessment”   – http://www.noycefdn.org/publications.html .

The new, searchable ATIS website http://atis.pearweb.org/ makes information about these assessment tools easily accessible.

Come explore the website at http://atis.pearweb.org/.  Read reviews and ratings by practitioners who are using these tools.  You are also invited to write reviews on instruments that you are using.  The site will be continuously updated in collaboration with youth development researchers at 4-H.

For further information about this website, please contact us or visit http://pearweb.org/ .

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Opportunities in Hard Times: Building Out-of-School Time Learning Systems that Last

Posted in Resources, tagged on May 20, 2009| Leave a Comment »

A number of U.S. cities, including five supported by Wallace, have been building new systems of high-quality out-of-school time programming citywide. But what should supporters do to ensure that these young systems endure, during the immediate economic crisis and for the long term? This report on a recent Wallace-sponsored conference that gathered 108 OST system coordinators, funders, researchers and others offers possible answers to that challenge, including: forging closer ties to schools, using new data systems to inform budget decisions, and making the recession an opportunity to introduce bold changes.

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NEW! Core Competencies for Afterschool Educators‏

Posted in Professional Development and Training, Resources on May 19, 2009| Leave a Comment »

NOW AVAILABLE!
Core Competencies for Afterschool Educators is a new guide to help programs and systems define the capabilities that are critical for afterschool educators committed to high quality programs that produce positive participant outcomes.  Funded by the C.S. Mott Foundation and developed by a working group of afterschool experts drawing from the field , the guide includes core competencies for afterschool educators and supervisors, and steps for designing professional development system.

The publications is free.  Visit http://www.afterschoolprofessional.info to download the .pdf or order copies while supplies last.

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