Engaging and Enriching After School Programs Through Partnerships: Giving Children and Youth the Opp

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Engaging and Enriching After School Programs
Through Partnerships Giving Children and Youth
the Opportunities and Connections to Keep Them on
Track
By Terry K. Peterson, Ph.D.
Terry is the Director of the Afterschool And
Community Learning Resource Network, funded by
the Mott Foundation. He is also the University
of South Carolina Educational Foundation Senior
Fellow for Policies and Partnerships and
educational consultant to the dean at the College
of Charleston. He can be reached by calling
843.953.7403 or 803.238.4343, or by emailing him
at tkpalexva_at_aol.com
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For every complex issue, there is a simple
solution, and it is almost always wrong.
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With limited time, money, and energy What should
we concentrate on?
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Two-fer and Three-fer Strategies
Quality after school and summer programs done
through high performance partnerships can have
multiple impacts on multiple levels.
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Why is this so important?
First Higher academic standards means kids need
more time, help, and hope.
This does not mean Drill and Kill, but
providing enriching learning opportunities linked
to state standards.
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These programs should help connect children and
families to positive community groups and
organizations such as arts clubs, 4-H and Girl
Scouts. They should also provide opportunities
from internships with employers and service
learning opportunities.
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Second Estimates of the number of children who go
home alone each day are between 8-15 million. The
cost and uncertainty of care during these hours
is a huge problem for many familiesand employers.
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Productivity has been found to decline in workers
during these hours. Parent surveys indicate that
babysitting is no longer felt to be even
minimally adequate. Parents want their children
to be stretched and challenged to do their very
best.
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These parents opinions match closely the growing
body of research about what makes up an effective
and quality after school and summer program.
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Third Public/ Private Ventures found that gap
time to be particularly troubling. Fight Crime
Invest in Kids found the highest crime rate for
youth is between the hours of 3pm 7pm
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After School Programs can help deal with

• extended learning
• quality child care
• positive youth development
• safety

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One Communitys after school problem

• Several after school activities Boys and Girls
  Club, Communities in Schools, 21st Century grant,
  etc.
• Each program actually competed with each other
  for students.
• No transportation because each program operated
  at different times and days.

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They were offering programs not serving
children, or families, or education, or youth
development - Director of 21st Century grant
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Each program was offered space in the school to
not just coexist, but work together, which

• reinforced each others goals
• accommodated each others schedules
• increased student participation
• helped working parents

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The jointly offered program runs from 3pm to
545pm every day. Participation is so great that
they can justify running school buses at
545pm. Adult education and computer classes now
offered.
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With current community, governmental and
non-profit structures, no one group is really
responsible for after school programs.
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We can not solve problems by using the same kind
of thinking we used when we created them. -
Albert Einstein
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This is why your work locally and the emergence
of the NC-CAP is so important. You are enabling
and facilitating multiple partners to work
together both at the state level and in
communities.
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This is called having the grass tops and grass
roots working together. This isnt easy or nice
and clean, but the payoff is great when you are
successful.
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• I dont mind fighting hard for something even if
  we lose, but I have to know we have a fighting
  chance to be successful.
• Richard Riley
• Former education cabinet secretary

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So do you have a fighting chance to be successful?
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Afterschool Alliance Poll
Each year they find that every major demographic
group supports after school expansion and
collaboration, and financial support for it.
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Afterschool Alliance Poll

• Nine in ten voters believe there is a need for a
  place where children can go after school everyday
  that provides opportunities to learn.
• Seven in ten voters (or 72) believe after
  school programs are an absolute necessity for
  their communities

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There are not many opportunities in policy,
partnerships, and programming areas where you can
have multiple positive impacts. You are the lynch
pin for making this critical cross-sector effort
happen in after school.
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We start the same but where we land, Its
sometimes fertile soil and sometimes sand.
-Kathy Mattea