Algona, Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Location: Kossuth Connections, 116 S Thorington St, Algona
Council Bluffs, Wednesday, October 5, 2011
Location: Micah House, 1415 Ave. J, Council Bluffs
Cedar Rapids, Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Location: United Way of East Central Iowa, 317 7th Ave SE, Cedar Rapids
Des Moines, Tuesday, November 1, 2011;
Location: Polk County River Place, 2309 Euclid Ave, Des Moines
A Postville training will be added soon, with more details to come!
To register for the YPQA Basics Training, click here and complete by September 19.
Background:
The Youth Program Quality Assessment (Youth PQA), developed by the High/Scope Educational Research Foundation and supported nationally by the David P. Weikart Center for Youth Program Quality and the Forum for Youth Investment, offers an opportunity to build capacity and bring new rigor to our ability to measure the quality of youth programs. Based on its cross-application in before and afterschool settings, prevention, intervention, and sanction-based programs, a series of one-day trainings on program self-assessment using the Youth PQA will be offered (see linked registration form). Currently, the Youth PQA is used in a variety of settings across Iowa and is supported, recommended, and/or used by several state agencies and/or statewide projects supported with state funds, United Way of Central, Northern, and East Central Iowa, various Decategorization boards, and the Chrysalis Foundation. It has been piloted in multiple state funding streams and has been viewed by the Iowa Collaboration for Youth Development to have wide applicability in Iowa as a measure of program quality and as a tool to inform professional development efforts. The Youth PQA is used nationally in over twenty-six states, primarily with 21st Century Community Learning Center programs, and four national systems including Camp Fire USA, CYFAR, American Camping Association, and 4-H.
The Tool:
The Youth PQA is a research validated and field tested tool consisting of four sections or subscales, each being a dimension of program quality critical for positive youth development (safe environment, supportive environment, youth interaction, and youth engagement). The School-Aged tool can be used with youth in grades K-6 while the Youth PQA is used with youth in grades 4-12. Administration of the Youth PQA involves direct observation of youth program activities and a structured interview with a program director. The instrument can be used by outside observers to produce the most precise data or as a program self-assessment that generates conversations among staff about quality issues. This tool can be used as a self-assessment or external assessment instrument. For more information on the Youth PQA, the research behind it, and the results of its use in specific locations, visit www.cypq.org.
Training Information:
The training will be provided by Amy Croll from Community!Youth Concepts (CYC) in Des Moines. Amy has also served as a national field consultant for the David P. Weikert Center for Youth Program Quality since 2008, providing Youth PQA trainings across the United States.
To register for the YPQA Basics Training, click here. The registration deadline is September 19, 2011. Registration is $100 and includes materials and lunch. Scholarships are available to 21st Century Community Learning Center grantees. Community!Youth Concepts reserves the right to cancel the training if fewer than 15 people are registered in a particular location.
If you have questions, please feel free to contact Community!Youth Concepts (Amy or Julie) at 515.243.4292 or [email protected].
