April 2008 Edition 
CLCN News Header
Upcoming Event:
Community Schools Laboratory 
April 27-29                  
Laboratory (Lincoln) The Coalition for Community Schools, in partnerships with the Lincoln CLC program, will host a three day workshop in Lincoln to train for teams of four or more people on how to organize and plan a community school agenda.  This is a great opportunity for Nebraska programs to work with some of the leading professionals in the field and to better position your initiative to better meet the needs of the children, families and communities you serve. While the clock is ticking, there is still time to register. 

For more information, visit www.communityschools.org. 
If you have statewide events that you would like to share with others in the Network, please send them our way and we can post them in future newsletters. 
New Web Resources

Arne Duncan video in support of community schools

Watch and share the approximately 6:30 video clip of Secretary of Education Duncan discussing why he is such a strong supporter of community schools.  It is inspiring viewing and may be a valuable aid in helping you place your program in a national context when making the case to local officials.


Camp Fire USA's A Guide to Service Learning for Middle School Youth

Building on the discussion started in our newsletter last month, this resource from Camp Fire USA, produced with support from the Corporation for National and Community Service, provides a thorough overview to service learning and a guide to developing out of school time programs for Middle School age youth.  Thanks to our partners at Camp Fire for allowing us to share this document.
We'd Like to Hear From You . . .

If you haven't already done so, please visit our website and fill out a Partner Form at:
www.NebraskaCLCNetwork.org

Feel free to contact Jeff Cole with your questions or comments at:
jcole@nebraskachildren.org

The Nebraska Community Learning Center Network is administered  by Nebraska Children and Families Foundation.






















Youth Engagement in CLCs
Greetings!

The youth involved with our Community Learning Centers and Afterschool Programs are our most valuable resource.  In the last two issues we have discussed how young people are powerful ambassadors for afterschool programs and how service learning projects are a great way to engage older youth in out of school time programs.  This month we finish this series by focusing on how youth can be a valuable addition to a high quality CLC program staff. 
Energize
Energize Your Staff
Through Youth
Involvement

Young people can play an important role in staffing quality CLC programs. Older youth are usually very energetic, eager to work and learn and many have a natural ability to connect with younger youth.  Working as part of a staff team in a quality out of school time program could have that added benefit of providing a young person with that one hands-on experience that encourages them to pursue a career in education.  

The current environment for engaging older youth in out of school time programs is extremely positive.  Through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) the Federal Department of Labor (DoL) is providing significant resources to restart the Summer Youth Employment Program.  This program provides public and private non-profit organizations with the opportunity to hire DoL eligible youth between the ages of 14 - 24 to work over the summer between May 1st and Sept 30th.  In Nebraska this program is administered through three local workforce advisory boards - Greater Lincoln, Greater Omaha or Greater Nebraska.  Youth or employers interested in this program can find more  information on the Nebraska Department of Labor's website at  http://www.dol.state.ne.us/nwd/center.cfm?PRICAT=4&SUBCAT=4W
 
If you are interested in participating in the SYEP, you may want to consider working in partnership with a local community college to recruit older youth to work in your program.  Community colleges typically have experience working with WIA programs.  California, for example, has a statewide integrated program that provides both employment opportunities for eligible community college students while at the same time provides students with funds for classes related to their interest in working in out of school time programs.  

More generally, colleges and universities are some of the best places to look for additional staff and volunteers for afterschool programs.  College students can be great tutors or mentors and a growing number of universities are eager to provide their students with meaningful service options.  With the Senate's recent passage of the Serve America Act there will soon be dramatically more federal support for programs aimed at increasing volunteerism, including encouraging young people to volunteer in education related initiatives.  

We urge you and your afterschool program partners to take advantage of this growing momentum and get more young people involved in your out of school time programs.  
Achievement
Afterschool Promotes Student Achievement
by Danya Krannawitter
Nebraska's Afterschool Ambassador

Sometimes it may feel like we can't make a difference in the little time that we have before and after school to impact a child's learning and achievement.  However, research increasingly shows a vital link between what happens afterschool and improved student achievement during the school day.  What we do afterschool really does make a difference when it is linked to the learning outcomes of the school day, particularly around school improvement goals.

So how do we effectively link afterschool programs with school improvement and learning goals?  One of the most effective ways is for afterschool providers to work intentionally with school partners and integrate afterschool staff into the school improvement process.  Afterschool staff, particularly site supervisors and lead staff, can participate on school improvement committees and during staff development trainings.  The recent move towards professional learning communities in the schools offers another vital link for afterschool staff to connect with school staff in a collaborative way to address the learning goals for individual students and the school as a whole.  Students greatly benefit academically when the learning goals during the afterschool hours are aligned with the learning goals during the school day.

Some may argue that afterschool programs should be a time for students to let off steam and play after a long day of academics and learning.  I would counter that truly effective afterschool programs strategically imbed learning goals in play activities so that students do not feel that they are sitting in the classroom after a long day of sitting in the classroom.  Simple recreational activities can be transformed into learning activities when math facts are imbedded in the activities.  Arts and crafts can be more intentional when linked with literature.  Thematic plans can include recreational and play activities that are fun and meaningful for students and also begin with an intentional learning goal.   Check out the Center for Afterschool Education (www.caceafterschool.org) for some great resources on how to have fun in afterschool programs while still making a difference in student achievement.