Afterschool for All Making the Case to Policy Makers, Your Community, and the Public Afterschool Alliance

What We’ll Cover  Making the Case:  Public Wants & Needs Afterschool  Afterschool Outcomes  Benefits to Bottom Line  Policy Matters: Funding & Resources for Afterschool  National  State and Local  What You Can Do: Events, Media & More

New America After 3pm Data  15.1 million of the country’s K-12 youth take care of themselves after school  3 to 6 p.m. are the most dangerous hours for kids.  Juvenile crime soars  Peak hours for drugs, alcohol, cigarettes and sex  Lack of physical activity/obesity  Parents of 18 million children, or 38%, would sign up for an afterschool program – if one were available

Demand for Afterschool Programs  83% of voters agree – children need a place to go afterschool that is organized, safe, and educational  76% - newly elected officials in Congress should increase funding for afterschool  69% of voters - support tax increase  94% Democrats, 83% Independents, 71% Republicans – there’s a need for an organized, safe place for children and teens afterschool Source: Afterschool Alliance Poll conducted by Lake, Snell, Perry & Associates, Inc., November 2006 and 2008

Benefits of Quality Afterschool Programs  Improved Test Scores and Grades  21 st CCLC participants nationwide—43% improved reading scores, 42% improved math scores  In California, higher academic achievement, test scores  In Ohio, higher scores in every subject tested  Oct 2007 study – big gains in test scores, work habits  Improved School Attendance, Engagement in Learning  More likely to come to school, stay in school and graduate  In NY, higher daily attendance and credit accumulation  In Chicago, higher class attendance, lower course failure, higher graduation rates  Los Angeles program reduced drop out rate by 20%

Benefits of Quality Afterschool Programs  Improved Social and Emotional Behavior  Lower truancy, drug use, violence teen pregnancy  Greater self-confidence  Develop leadership, critical thinking, team-building skills  Improved Health and Wellness  Structured physical activities, healthy snacks help prevent weight gain tied to inactivity after school and during summer

Benefits to Bottom Line Benefits to Bottom Line  Rose Institute  Every dollar invested in afterschool programs saves taxpayers at least $3  Catalyst Study (December 2006)  New Catalyst Study - $50-$300 billion/year due to lost productivity  PCAST – Parental Concern about Afterschool Time  Low-income and minority parents are much more likely than higher-income, white parents to have trouble finding high-quality, convenient and affordable programs.  Corporate Voices for Working Families  “After School For All: A Call To Action From The Business Community”

Who’s Doing What

Federal Afterschool Policy  21 st Century Community Learning Centers $35 million increase for FY10  ESEA (NCLB) authorized $2.5 billion  Other sources of afterschool money: CCDBG, OJJDP, SES, Department of Agriculture  New Initiatives: Rural Afterschool and Afterschool for Older Youth Federal Funding Picture 2002$1 billion$1.25 billion 2003$993.5M$1.5 billion 2004$991M$1.75 billion 2005$991M$2 billion 2006$981M$2.25 billion 2007$981M$2.5 billion 2008$1.1 B$2.5 billion 2009$1.13 B$2.5 billion 2010$1.166 B$2.5 billion 2011$1.153 B$2.5 billion FY Amount Appropriated Amount Called for in NCLB

Reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act  The President’s Budget and ESEA proposal would divert 21st Century Community Learning Centers program funding away from afterschool programming toward adding time to the school day, without a clear role for community partners nor parameters on how the time is used.  21st CCLC funding already can be used to support afterschool components of full service community schools, however proposed changes would hinder the movement towards developing a new, large source of federal community schools funding.  Proposal turns 21st CCLC program into a competitive grant program, rather than one working by formula. Some states would be left out.  “We need a dedicated funding stream for 21st Century Community Learning Centers, and we have a strong preference that the funding for full-service community schools be a distinct funding stream. The leverage for full-service service community schools will be more significant if it is grown as a distinct funding stream.”

State and Local funding  Statewide Afterschool Networks  Creative and Diverse Ways to Fund Afterschool  CA – $550 million to K-8 programs – ASES  GA – $14 million to school- and community- based afterschool programs through TANF, renewed for FY09, plus $20.3 million in one- time funds  TN – $12.5 million unclaimed lottery funds (LEAP)  Local community foundations  Mayoral/Citywide Initiatives

Roadmap to Afterschool for All  On average parents pay 76% of the cost of afterschool through tuition and fees  54% in low income communities  Currently the federal government contributes only 11% of the cost of afterschool  State contribute 3.1% of cost  The Roadmap calls for a total federal investment of just under $18 billion ($17,935,775,000) – would reduce the burden on low-income families while providing 5.6 million low-income youth with access to afterschool programs

What You Can Do

Afterschool as a Platform for…Everything!  Health Care  Workforce prep  Nutrition/Physical Health  Service learning/Community Engagement  Academic Skills  Family Involvement in Schools

October 21, 2010

Lights On Afterschool!  Annual nationwide event  Brings attention to the need for afterschool programs and resources  8,000+ events and 1 million Americans nationwide  National Chair Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger; Kevin Sorbo and Rhea Perlman as spokespeople  Thousands of newspaper & TV stories  Build relationships w/ business community, neighborhood leaders, elected officials

Group Activity Using a Lights On Afterschool event as your framework, brainstorm community outreach techniques and strategies for effective messaging. Presenter will pass out detailed instructions.

Arrange a Site Visit  Ask your Members of Congress, local policy makers and media to visit your afterschool program: Help your elected officials and your community establish a personal connection to afterschool by inviting them to visit a program and see firsthand how it is helping kids and families  Find the home district address and phone number for your elected officials.  Identify a few dates during the next Congressional recess when you could host a tour of your program.  Call the district office.  Before the visit: Identify youth, parents, program staff, school officials and community partners who would be convincing spokespeople for your program.  What to do the day of the visit.

Ten Steps to Media Coverage 1. Create a Media List. 2. Invite the Public. 3. Identify your 2-3 key messages. 4. Structure events with media in mind. 5. Appeal to the press, build relationships. 6. Issue news releases. 7. Develop press kits. 8. Manage media at your events. 9. Event management. 10. Reap the benefits of your work!

Contact Congress  Call, write or  Meet district staff  Afterschool for All Challenge  Joint conference with NAA this year, April 19-21, Washington, DC  Honoring leaders in Congress and in the States  Let Members of Congress hear from you and your youth about afterschool

Messages for Congress  These are tough economic times and now is not the time to cause additional pain to working families.  15 million children are unsupervised after school every day – we need to work together to increase opportunities afterschool – and to insure that the exciting partnerships that bring extended learning opportunities to our children continue to build in scope and quality.  The afterschool community embraces reform –merely adding more time is not the answer –in communities that choose a longer school day it is imperative to focus on content and delivery.  We believe that if community partners work with schools to shape a longer school day/year and are true partners in the delivery (and receipt of funding) then these programs have a higher likelihood of success.  Innovative school reform that embraces these partnerships should have its own funding stream.  There is very little data on a longer school day so we should proceed with caution and move slowly.  Other states, show promising models of extending the school day. In Rhode Island and New York community partners have been working with the school districts to develop and implement plans.

Afterschool for All  Show your support for afterschool programs and what they do for our children, families and communities  Register your support & be recognized by Afterschool for All campaign  Thousands of leaders, organizations and businesses already on board  Sign up at

Nominate a Program to win MetLife Award and $5000  MetLife Foundation and Afterschool Alliance  Awards of $5000 and featured in issue brief  Middle School Programs in 4 areas  Overall high quality MS programs  STEM  Health & Wellness  Prep for College & Careers 

Stay in touch! Rivka Burstein-Stern Field Outreach Coordinator Afterschool Alliance (202)