Afterschool Programs: Bureaucratic Barriers and Strategies for Success Effective Strategies of the Key Players
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S C H O O L Strengthening the vital alliance between school board & superintendent Afterschool Programs: Bureaucratic Barriers and Strategies for Success Effective Strategies of the Key Players Why Afterschool? Where What Can You Are the Go for Barriers? Help? S traight talk By Paul D. Houston Afterschool Programs: A Historic Opportunity To Serve All Children in Yo ur District School leaders can no longer see their responsibil- consistently participate in quality afterschool ity as merely a 9 to 3 issue. What happens to children activities over a period of time have better after school has a direct impact on how they learn and grades, greater student engagement in school, grow. This issue of School Governance & Leadership increased homework completion, reduced is about afterschool programs — a powerful tool that absenteeism, less tardiness, greater parent has not been fully tapped in our efforts to guarantee involvement, lower truancy rates, increased civic children not just access to school, but success through engagement and reduced crime and violence in high achievement. This document is a companion piece the non-school hours. to the May 2005 issue of TheSchool Administrator, which focused on afterschool programs, making it AASA has been an advocate of quality afterschool clear that afterschool programs are worth the effort. programs since the early 1990s, when we collaborated As Terry Peterson, national afterschool advocate and with schools across the country to develop and sup- former counselor to Secretary of Education Richard port afterschool programs for young adolescents facing Riley, asks, in light of the hard financial times faced by multiple challenges to school and life success. These many districts and the hard work of sustaining quality programs blended enrichment, supportive relation- afterschool programs: “Is it fair to wonder if we are on ships with caring adults and academic support, and the verge of missing a unique, even historic opportu- they were staffed by teachers, parents and community nity to fill the hours immediately following the end of members. I encourage you to consider recent research, the school day with a treasure chest of academically promising practices and the variety of resources pro- enriching activities and expanded learning opportuni- vided in this document and to call on local, state and ties. I believe that it is worth the effort, and it’s worth federal funds for afterschool programs. I encourage the money, even if we have to struggle to find it." As you to think about the many non-academic personal, An-Me Chung and Eugene Hillsman of the C.S. Mott social and intellectual skills that contribute to success- Foundation point out in TheSchool Administrator: ful learning and adult life that lucky children acquire through family-arranged and -supported afterschool Afterschool evaluations have shown that not only activities. And I urge you not to miss this “historic do afterschool programs provide a safe place opportunity” to more fully serve the children in your during the non-school hours, but students who school districts, especially those most in need. Paul D. Houston is executive director of the American Association of School Administrators, a professional association serving approximately 14,000 school leaders nationwide. table of contents Fall 2005 A School Board Publication of the American Association of School Administrators Straight Talk 2 Newsbrief 4 features 5 Why Afterschool? “We must make sure that every child has 8 What Are the Barriers? a safe and enriching place to go after school so that children can say 10 It's All About Leadership ‘no’ to drugs and alco- hol and crime, and ‘yes’ to reading, soccer, com- 11 Effective Strategies puters and a brighter of the Key Players future for themselves.” — President Bill Clinton from “Safe and Smart,” 1998, the Mott Foundation 12 Where Can You Go for Help? This document was supported by a grant from the C.S. Mott Foundation. Its con- tents are solely the responsibility of the authors and editors and do not necessarily reflect the official view of the C.S. Mott Foundation. School Governance & Leadership 3 N ewsbrief SC HOOL Lawmakers Form First-Ever Strengthening the vital alliance between school board &superintendent Congressional Afterschool Caucuses Strengthening the vital In a move designed to raise public alliance between school afterschool programs work to keep board & superintendent awareness about the need for more kids safe, help working families and afterschool programs and increase improve academic achievements,” Fall 2005 Vol. 6, No. 1 resources for quality afterschool said Senator Dodd. “We should do care, members of Congress have more to support these initiatives The American Association of established the first-ever Afterschool that make a difference in the lives School Administrators publishes Caucuses — one in the Senate and of our children, so I am pleased to School Governance & Leadership to one in the House of Representatives. be a part of this new, bipartisan foster cooperation between school U.S. Sens. Christopher J. Dodd (D- Afterschool Caucus in support of superintendents and boards. Conn.) and John Ensign (R-Nev.) quality afterschool initiatives.” and Reps. Nita M. Lowey (D-N.Y.) and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-Fla.) AASA PRESIDENT Dodd and Ensign have circulated David E. Gee will serve as co-chairs of the newly a letter to their Senate colleagues formed, bipartisan Caucuses. encouraging them to join. AASA PRESIDENT-ELECT Eugene White “Afterschool programs are cost-effi- The founding members of the cient because they keep children out Senate’s Afterschool Caucus are AASA EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR of trouble and give them the oppor- Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) and Susan Paul D. Houston tunities they need to learn,” Senator Collins (R-Maine); the founding Ensign said. “These programs are members of the House Afterschool EDITOR a good investment in the future of Caucus are Reps. Randy Cunning- Sharon Adams-Taylor our children, families and communi- ham (R-Calif.) and Dale Kildee (D- ties. I am proud to co-chair the new CONSULTING PUBLISHER Mich.) For more information, visit Debbie Berger Senate Afterschool Caucus.” the Afterschool Alliance website at The Unlimited Group www.afterschoolalliance.org/news_ “Kids, parents and law enforce- events.cfm. ■ GRAPHICS & ILLUSTRATION ment professionals all agree: Quality Elizabeth Burnett SchlegelBagel Design Acknowledgements Copyright © 2005 The American Association of School Administrators is grateful to by the those who shared their wisdom and expertise with us for this SG&L American Association of issue on afterschool. We acknowledge the Charles Stewart Mott School Administrators, Foundation for their support, the superintendents who participated in all rights reserved. the study and those who met with us in focus groups, answered our School Governance & Leadership (ISSN 1099-6379) surveys, responded to our interviews and cheered us on. A special is an occasional thank you goes to Anne Turnbaugh Lockwood, former AASA staffer, publication of AASA, who selected the school districts and initiated much of the original 801 N. Quincy St., Suite 700 research in this study and to Liz Griffin, for her whiz-bang copy edit- Arlington, VA 22203. ing. We appreciate the work of Debbie Berger of the Unlimited Group Telephone: 703-875-0700 and Elizabeth Burnett of SchlegelBagel Design for their research and graphic design. And finally, a special tribute to AASA project directors $6.50 each Rebecca Nelson and Nancy Miller, who shepherded this publication Postmaster: from idea to final product. Send address changes to AASA Membership, — Sharon Adams-Taylor 801 N. Quincy St., Suite 700 Associate Executive Director Arlington, VA 22203 4 Fall 2005 Why Afterschool? Th e opportunity for school administrators to transform the quality of education that students receive today in public schools may be as close as the growing focus on afterschool programs. ASA’s magazine, TheSchool Administrator, thoroughly A developed the case for afterschool programs in its May 2005 issue. Well-structured after- school programs effectively expand learning time for students, provide opportunities for collaboration with the broader community, and constructively fill those hours that, at best, are spent idly and, at worst, entice unsupervised youngsters into delinquent or high-risk activities. While the Bush Administration’s No Child Left Behind legislation primarily promotes the academic/ tutoring aspect of the afterschool picture, other organizations and individuals have taken a more expansive view of the possibilities, suggesting that afterschool pro- grams not only bolster the academic agenda but also provide — within a structure that differs from the regular school day — time for social, emotional and physical skill building that students must have to achieve life success. School Governance & Leadership 5 This broadening of the mission, ture on academic achievement, and to go, such as Girl and Boy Scouts, much different than just expanding achievement in general." religious groups, Little League and the course offerings, was the subject classes in art, music and dance. of comments by Karen “We decided that afterschool pro- Less-advantaged students are more Pittman of The Forum for grams should first define likely to watch television or play Youth Investment in a Youth their full set of goals in informally. Thus they miss out on Today column. She explained each outcome area and the structured activities that help