The Afterschool Experience Newsletter

August 2008

Volume 5 ~ Issue 7

In This Issue

Green Clean Schools

Family Involvement

Youth Development

Resources

Funding Opportunities

Contact Information

Green Clean Schools National Summit
Building Coalitions to bring Green Clean School laws to every state

Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2008
Washington, DC
Click here to Register

In 2006, the state of New York passed a law requiring green cleaning in schools. In 2007, Illinois passed a similar law. Now, activists in more than a dozen states are planning to introduce legislation requiring schools to protect the health of students and staff by implementing green cleaning programs.
Please join Healthy Schools Campaign and advocates from around the country for a special Green Clean Schools National Summit, building on this momentum to bring health-promoting green cleaning laws to every state in the nation. For more information, please visit www.greencleanschools.org

Call for Submissions

"After the Bell"

The School Administrator's Association of New York State (SAANYS) is seeking article submissions on best practices in after-school and summer school programming supporting student achievement and enrichment. Ways to effectively implement, manage, and maintain the program should be included.

Articles should be no longer than 1,800 words in length. Submit articles by 8/25 to: tschell@saanys.org

Upcoming Events

Step-Up for Kids NY
Albany, NY
September 16
Rally to make children a state and national political priority!
New York CAN is hosting a rally in Albany on the Capitol steps, in conjunction with Step Up for Kids events across the country. This special day, conceived of by the Every Child Matters Education Fund, seeks to bring child friendly organizations and individuals together in every state capital to advocate on behalf of children and call upon Presidential, Congressional and statewide candidates to address the needs of children and discuss their plans for meeting those needs. The event is free but registration is requested as we're hoping to get 2,000 - 3,000 people to participate in this event. Click here to register and for detailed event information.

Lights On Afterschool

October 16
People from all walks of life, all ages and occupations, and all corners of the country will be participating in the 9th annual Lights On Afterschool, the only nationwide rally for afterschool programs. Lights On Afterschool is celebrated nationwide to call attention to the importance of afterschool programs for America's children, families and communities. The folks at the Empire State Building were so impressed with last year's Lights On Afterschool celebrations that they already agreed to light up in yellow this October 16 for Lights On Afterschool!

Youth Service America: Youth Service Institute 2008

Orlando, FL

October 26-28
Across the street, around the world, youth are improving their communities through service and service learning. The 2008 Youth Service Institute from Youth Service America will present opportunities for participants to think and act both locally and globally, and learn inventive ways to engage young people as assets and resources.

SAVE THE DATE!

The After School Experience (TASE)

Tarrytown, NY

November 17-19, 2008

QUICK LINKS

U.S. Department of Education

New York State Education Department (NYSED)

NY 21st CCLC Statewide Technical Assistance Center

NYS Center for School Safety (NYSCSS)

New York State Afterschool Network (NYSAN)

Message from Our Director

Dear Colleagues:

In Marketing we say that facts tell, stories sell. This fall the Afterschool Alliance will unveil a groundbreaking online initiative to celebrate the diversity, depth and power of the after school experience in America today. The Afterschool Storybook project will highlight how after school programs are improving the lives of children and parents, and enriching communities.

Timed to coincide with the 10th anniversary of the federal 21st Century Community Learning Centers initiative, the Afterschool Storybook will provide a way to share these stories.

The New York State Center for School Safety and the New York 21st CCLC Statewide Technical Assistance Center joins the Afterschool Alliance in this initiative. We encourage program grantees in all out-of-school time programs throughout New York and the country to participate.

All powerful stories - from urban inner cities to rural communities, from seniors volunteering at after school programs to young children who find their passion at them - will be published. For additional information go to www.afterschoolalliance.org/storybooksamples.cfm

Enjoy the rest of your summer and stay tuned for more information on this initiative in our special September TASE Newsletter "Back to School" edition.

For the youth,

The 21st Century Community Learning Centers (CCLC) 2008 Summer Institute was held on July 15-17 in Dallas, TX. The Summer Institute celebrated Ten Years of the Best in Afterschool. The following ten 21st CCLC goals were presented by Sylvia Lyles, 21st CCLC Program Director, Academic Improvement Programs Group at the US Department of Education:

1. Provide high quality programs to children in high-poverty and low-performing schools.
2. Expand support for afterschool programming among parents, taxpayers and policymakers.
3. Develop strong partnerships with school leaders, community institutions and families.
4. Improve academic achievement.
5. Provide high quality enrichment opportunities.
6. Improve social, emotional and behavioral outcomes.
7. Prevent risk-taking behaviors.
8. Promote health and wellness.
9. Promote regular and sustained student participation.
10. Maintain quality afterschool programming.

The Charles Stewart Mott Foundation annually presents the William S. White Achievement Award at the 21st CCLC Summer Institute as a lifetime achievement award to an individual who has dedicated his/her work, time and effort in the service of children, schools and communities. The award was established in 2005 and first given to William S. White, the person for whom the award was named. This year, in honor of the 10th anniversary of the 21st CCLC initiative, the award was presented to two 21st CCLC programs of distinction identified by their peers. Congratulations to the 2008 recipients: Connections Afterschool Program in Holyoke, MA and Pawtucket School Department COZ* 21st CCLC Program in Pawtucket, RI.

*Child Opportunity Zone

"As we all know, kids, families and communities need the afterschool experience to be rich in information as well as be practical and enjoyable." -William S. White, President and CEO of the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation and first recipient of the William S. White Award.

Family Involvement

Next Issue: Back to School

Parental Involvement: Storytelling as a Key to Literacy

A strong family involvement plan means more than inviting parents to an open house at the start of the school year, then hoping for the best. According to Catherine Jordan, SEDL's program manager for Afterschool, Family and Community, "Unless schools, families and communities work together to raise student achievement, their efforts will be too fragmented to make a difference in student achievement." (SEDL)

Work with parents by motivating them to read with their children. Remind them that teaching children to read involves more than helping them to recognize the combinations of sounds and letters that make up words. Understanding the meaning of text-words, numbers, and images, in print or digital form-is a no less critical part of what it means to be literate today. (International Reading Association)

Boost Young Children's Achievement

Visit the Harvard Family Research Project's (HFRP)The Family Involvement Storybook Project which uses children's storybooks with family educational involvement themes to boost young children's achievement by promoting family engagement in learning and literacy skills. This project focuses on culturally diverse low-income families, with a special emphasis on Latino families. It provides information and tools to support the use of commercially available children's storybooks, as well our own research-based storybook, to promote family involvement in school, home, and out-of-school time settings. These resources are available online on the Storybook Corner.

Research has amply documented that family engagement in education and learning matters to children's successful outcomes. Family involvement storybooks offer an original way to carry this important message from research into everyday use and into the many settings where children's picture books are read and shared. The Storybook Project identifies commercially published picture books that touch on such topics as home-school communication and cultural differences in family engagement. It also features an original bilingual storybook, Tomasito's Mother Comes to School/La mamá de Tomasito visita la escuela, inspired by a real case from HFRP's family involvement study and available free online. With family involvement storybooks, educators can share knowledge about family involvement, and families can be inspired, informed, and empowered to support their children's learning and development.

HFRP's family involvement research tells us that children are an often overlooked but very important part of the family engagement process. Family involvement storybooks provide a way to acknowledge that child voice, and bring children into the family engagement conversation. Storybooks can also provide accessible ways to stimulate reflection, discussion, and action for adults with low levels of print literacy or for English Language Learners.

For additional information visit HFRP's Storybook Corner and SEDL's Family Involvement Newsletter

Positive Youth Development: Principles and Practices

By Julliet Coxum, Senior Youth Development Specialist

New York State Center for School Safety

jullietcoxum Plans are underway for the New York State Governor's Summit on School Engagement and Dropout Prevention, scheduled for October 10th 2008 at Nazareth College in Rochester. Karen Pittman's article, Wanted: Youth Principles in Schools sets the stage for what's to come at the Summit. Check out Karen Pittman's conversation with several young people in Des Moines as they talk about their experiences with "the high school dropout crisis" in Iowa.

The "Rs" for education addressed in Pittman's article supports the tenets of Positive Youth Development principles and practices as well as the doctrines of America's Promise Alliance Five Promises that all children need in order to be successful. The Five Promises are: