NIOST Wins $2.1M Grant Over 5 Years to Continue Important Work

$2.1 Million Awarded for 5-Year Afterschool Matters Initiative to National Institute on Out-of-School Time at Wellesley Centers for Women

WELLESLEY, Mass., April 14 (AScribe Newswire) -- The Wellesley Centers for Women (WCW) is pleased to announce that the Robert Bowne Foundation is awarding more than $2.1 million over five years to the Centers' National Institute on Out-of-School Time (NIOST) for the National Afterschool Matters Initiative which will promote research and professional development for the out-of-school time industry.

"The Wellesley Centers for Women is committed to making the world a better place for women and their families through our research and action programs. NIOST's careful evaluation programs, comprehensive trainings, and advocacy for professional standards are examples of how we do this," says Susan McGee Bailey, Ph.D., WCW executive director. "Expanding the Afterschool Matters Initiative through NIOST advances both the field of out-of-school time and our organizational mission."

The primary objective of this award is to ensure the continuation of the well-established Afterschool Matters Initiative, which includes a Practitioner Fellowship Program; the production of the Afterschool Matters publications; the Edmund A. Stanley, Jr. Research Grantee program; and the Research Roundtables, as forums for connecting research and practice.

"Out-of-school time remains a critical issue for working families in the U.S. and I am proud that the Robert Bowne Foundation is entrusting this important initiative to us - it is an ideal fit," says Ellen Gannett, M.Ed., director of NIOST. "For more than three decades now, NIOST has broken ground to move this industry forward and our work with the National Afterschool Matters Initiative will only further enhance the quality of OST programming and the preparation of staff who support our children and youth."

The Practitioner Fellowship Program for out-of-school time professionals emphasizes reflection on practice towards improved program quality and outcomes for children and youth. Its goals include identifying and disseminating effective practice and strategies for program improvement; building a network of practitioners, scholars, educators, and policymakers working in and studying out-of-school time programs; and contributing to basic knowledge and the improvement of practice and policy in the area of out-of-school time programs.

NIOST is excited to be partnering with the National Writing Project (NWP) in the national expansion of the Practitioner Fellowship program. Additionally, Sara Hill, Ed.D., who has directed this project for the Robert Bowne Foundation for the last five years, will continue to bring her expertise to the Initiative.

The Afterschool Matters Journal is a high quality, peer reviewed journal which will continue to be a vehicle for disseminating cutting-edge research in the field of out-of-school time and also provide a forum for practice and program improvement findings from the Practitioner Fellowship program.

The existing Edmund A. Stanley, Jr. National Research Grant program of the Afterschool Matters Initiative will also continue under NIOST's direction. Currently, four grants of $10,000 are awarded to support research about community-based youth programs during out-of-school time hours. The grantees join with the practitioner fellows to present their work at Research Roundtables.

"We need to continue to examine the many facets of out-of-school time - environments, professional development, programming, engagement, funding - so that we may recommend best practices and policies that will not only improve outcomes for kids, but also further improve the industry benefits for youth workers and educators," stresses Georgia Hall, Ph.D., senior research scientist at WCW and Afterschool Matters project co-director. "The National Afterschool Matters Initiative allows us to expand practitioners' opportunity to reflect on and improve program practices which we know can make a real difference to these professionals and to youth outcomes."

Since 1974, the Wellesley Centers for Women has helped shape a better world through its research and action programs. Work at the Centers addresses three major areas: the status of women and girls and the advancement of their human rights both in the United States and around the globe; the education, care, and development of children and youth; and the emotional well-being of families and individuals. Issues of diversity and equity are central across all the work as are the experiences and perspectives of women from a variety of backgrounds and cultures.

For almost 30 years, the National Institute on Out-of-School Time (NIOST), formerly known as the School-Age Child Care Project, at the Wellesley Centers for Women, Wellesley College, has successfully brought national attention to the importance of children's out-of-school time. Through research, training, evaluation, and program development, NIOST has continued to be at the forefront of advances in the field, and has acted as a leader in many areas of out-of-school time policy development, increased quality standards, professional recognition, and community action.

The Robert Bowne Foundation supports the development of quality programs that offer literacy education to children and youth of New York City, in the out-of-school hours, especially for those living in economically disadvantaged neighborhoods. Afterschool Matters serves as this initiative name and a statement of the Foundation's belief: to children, adolescents, families, and communities, afterschool and other out-of-school-time programs matter a lot.

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CONTACT: Donna Tambascio, WCW Communications, 781-283-2552, dtambasc@wellesley.edu

NIOST Announces its Annual Summer Seminar

The National Institute for Out of School Time (NIOST) will host its annual summer seminar in Boston, Massachusetts on July 14-17, 2008. Seminar topics include Advancing School, Afterschool and Community Partnerships; Quality Advisor Training; System Building; and Afterschool Program Assessment System. The seminars are in-depth, research-based events designed to empower providers with the tools necessary to elevate their programs. For more information, visit National Institute for Out of School Time.

Listing courtesy of the Afterschool Alliance.


Editor's Note: Interested parties are encouraged to register as soon as possible as space is limited.

BOSTNet and United Way Announces Engaging Families Conference

BOSTNet and the United Way of Massachusetts Bay and Merrimack Valley have announced the upcoming Engaging Families conference that will be held at the United Way offices on June 6, 2008. More information from BOSTNet's website appears below:
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Families Matter!
Creating Opportunities for Family Voice, Empowerment and Leadership

Join BOSTnet and United Way on June 6th for the 2008 Families Matter! Conference to celebrate family involvement throughout the ages and stages of child and youth development. You'll learn how to design responsive programs, enhance parent communications, and improve outcomes for youth of all ages.

Panel Discussion
Hear from empowered parents, leading experts, and staff from out-of-school time programs that support family engagement strategies for young children, middle school students and teens.

Special Bonus Resources for Families: Receive copies of the NEW BOSTnet 2008-2009 Guide to Boston's Before and After School Programs!

Workshop Offerings
Guided working sessions will help you adapt strategies to your own programs. Click here for a description of each workshop.
Topics include:

* Including Family Voice and Leadership in your Programs: Going Beyond Family Night
* Developing a Family Focused Staff
* The Power of the 2 Minute Check-in at Pick-Up Time
* Engaging Families in Programs with Teens
* Accessing Community Cultural Resources

Event date: Friday, June 6, 2008
Time: 8:30 am- 12:30 pm
Location: United Way, 51 Sleeper Street, 1st floor Boston, MA 02210
Cost: This is a free event (breakfast and lunch included)

Questions? Contact Manosi Datta, Program Director, Evaluation and Operations at BOSTnet at 617.720.1290 x 210 or datta@bostnet.org.

Lawrence Music Afterschool Program Profiled

"For many at-risk youth in Lawrence, the violin offers a path to a gang-free life. Kids are "in gangs because they lack a sense of identity and belonging," Marcia Lier, director of Community Strings of Lawrence, told the Boston Globe. "A lot of kids in our program have difficult home lives, but [playing the violin] builds such self-confidence, such pride. I've seen some big-time attitudes fall by the wayside." Community Strings offers free violin lessons before, during and after school, on Saturdays and throughout the summer to more than 75 students in second through eighth grades. The program teaches students to give back to the community as well, scheduling performances in local hospitals, nursing homes and rehabilitation centers."

Listing courtesy of the Afterschool Alliance.


Editor's note: This is an example of an arts-based afterschool program and how the arts provide engaging and enriching alternatives for the Commonwealth's young people that can make a real difference in their lives.

Massachusetts House Votes Increases in Afterschool Line Items

This past week-end, the Massachusetts House of Representatives finalized their budget for FY09. It is exciting to share that several statewide programs that fund afterschool programs saw important increases. This is particularly exciting considering the current fiscal climate in the state.

Representative Marie St. Fleur, the Vice-Chair of the House Committee on Ways and Means and the Co-Chair of the Massachusetts Special Commission on After School and Out of School Time, was successful in her efforts to increase funding for the Afterschool and Out-of-School Time (ASOST) Program Quality grant from $2M last year to $5M this year.

The Shannon Grant Program which provides funding for afterschool programs as part of its gang prevention efforts, saw a $2M increase from last year. Now $13M is available for funding statewide instead of $11M.

The Department of Public Health's Youth Violence Prevention grant also received more funding - $3M this year versus $2M from last year.

The Extended Learning Time Initiative also received more funding in the House budget. Funded last year at $13M, now $17.5M is available statewide to continue to help schools lengthen their school day.

The Senate will be releasing their version of the state budget later this month and it is hoped that the Senate will also recognize the value of afterschool programs as they deliberate the budget.

Great to see you all yesterday

Howdy folks - great to see you all at the 21CCLC Coordinator meeting yesterday. I hope the little primer on the blog was helpful to folks as we continue to figure out the best ways to get information to you.

Do contact me if you have any questions about how to use the blog at dmclaughlin@kunnusta.com.

Cheers,

Deb

SAYO-Y Due Date

The due date for completed SAYO-Y surveys will be June 13, 2008.