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Update on ESEA
As debate on ESEA reauthorization reached the floor of the House of Representatives, afterschool supporters continued calling on Congress to save 21st CCLC and invest in afterschool and summer learning programs. Thanks to advocates from across the country, we're now a quarter of the way toward the goal of sending 10,600 emails to Congress by March 10 on behalf of the 1.6 million kids at risk of losing programs if 21st CCLC isn't protected-with less than two weeks to reach that goal, be sure to email Congress now if you haven't already. Read more about ESEA here.
This week, we also launched a Thunderclap campaign to coincide with the Afterschool for All Challenge on March 10, when hundreds of afterschool advocates will meet with Members of Congress face-to-face to share their stories and urge them to protect afterschool funding. If you can't make it to the Challenge, you can still add your voice-joining the #Invest3to6 Thunderclap will schedule a message to be blasted out from your Twitter, Facebook, or Tumblr account on March 10 at 1PM EST (one time only!). The message is customizable, so if you have an extra minute, be sure to tag your representatives in Congress and use our America After 3PM dashboard to add stats from your state.
(click here for larger image)
Click here for more briefs and resources from the Afterschool Alliance, and to subscribe to the Afterschool Snack.
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Roadshow Kick-Off:
Quality is a Journey, Not a Destination
OregonASK believes that participation from qualified staff in ongoing professional development is critical to offering a quality afterschool program. But, it can often be tough for providers to find training opportunities targeted specifically towards staff that work with school-age youth. OregonASK and the Oregon Department of Education Early Learning Division have teamed up to bring school-age training opportunities to locations all over the state. Because of the fantastic support of the Office of Child Care, OregonASK is able to offer these training events to providers free of cost, and all of them for Set Two professional development credit from the Oregon Registry.  The OregonASK quality Roadshow is now underway. On February 23 we kicked off our School-Age Training Roadshow at Willamalane Park and Rec, in Springfield. We had dozens of participants, some who drove in from an hour away- which only demonstrates how high the need is for school-age specific training opportunities.
In May we will head out to Medford, Bend, and Newport.
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The Mythos Challenge is Underway!
As the Mythos Project moves forward in its amazing journey, the Youth involved in the council who will organize its major concerns and events has largely been formed.
Meeting together at the Portland Art Museum for the third time this Spring, the council, along with support from Pixel Arts and other Mythos Challenge Partners, have begun to chart their exciting upcoming activities!
Among their potential responsibilities are the judging of the Mythos Challenge's entries from all over the state (including creating any judging criteria for entries submitted by May 15th), designing and implementing community outreach for the project, marketing it, development of an Exhibition with PAM's Object Stories to open in June, and planning the culminating Gala events to celebrate the Challenge on June 25th.
The Youth Council Members, representing both boys and girls with varied experience, backgrounds, and points of view, most definitely share an enthusiasm for the project of working together to bring life to the Challenge. Of the fourteen kids who now make up the council, four heard about it through Multnomah Public Library, several of whom have participated in Library Youth Councils like the one in Gresham. Multnomah county libraries will be an ongoing resource for the council, as well as providing workshops for those youth who are going to be submitting games, apps, and digital stories.
Each Youth participant is excited about multiple aspects of governance within the council so far, a fabulous sign for things to come!
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Summer Learning Summit:
A BIG Success
On February  10th at the Salem Convention Center, the Summer Learning Partnership and OregonASK hosted the Summer Learning Summit, funded by the National Conference of State Legislatures, to raise awareness and discuss the issues surrounding summer learning loss. Three panels of learning, library, and lunch experts discussed the importance of summer learning programs in their respective regions. Several panelists were Umatilla School District Superintendent Heidi Sipe, Robin Rolfe of the Oregon Association of School Libraries, and Joyce Dougherty from Child Nutrition Programs of the Oregon Department of Education.
In his keynote presentation, Matthew Boulay, founder and chair of the National Summer Learning Association spoke about the importance of expanded summer learning opportunities and the role of the Summer Learning Partnership in Oregon. Krina Lee, executive director of the Salem-Keizer Education Foundation ended the event with a passionate presentation about childhood hunger and eliminating the summer slide.
The Summer Learning Summit coincided with the introduction of House Bill 2650 in the Oregon House of Representatives, sponsored by Representatives Komp and Nathanson. This past week, House Bill 2650 was passed by the House Committee of Education and is now awaiting hearing by the Joint Committee of Ways and Means. Stay up-to-date with House Bill 2650 here.
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Digital Badges Update
In 2014, OregonASK applied for and received a grant from the Noyce Foundation to bring the concept digital badges to Oregon. With this grant, we assembled a workgroup to discuss and plan innovative ways to implement badging systems in Oregon. (Don't know what digital badges are? Read this short Introduction to Open Badges by Nate Otto of Concentric Sky)
After extensive discussion, the workgroup members developed pilot projects for badging systems in their own programs. These pilot projects are intended to test the waters for open badges in Oregon, and will issue real badges to real instructors and students.
We are excited to announce that one of o ur digital badging pilots has issued their very first badges! theNET, a program of Incite Inc., issued their first set of digital badges to a cohort of students who completed their Career-Based Training Workshop. theNET, or the Career Achievement Network, strives to implement programs in the community that will help develop essential workplace skills for young adults ages 16-26. The digital badge from theNET symbolizes that the recipient completed 200 hours of work experience and developed essential soft skills necessary for employment, as well as earned recommendations for employment from their work experience supervisor and workshop trainer. The badge will be recognized by many local employers.
Congratulations to Incite Inc. and their Career-Based Training students! Look for more updates as our pilot projects continue to issue digital badges.
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Oregon Girls Collaborative Mini Grants!
OGCP is excited to announce our 2015 mini grant recipients! After receiving 12 exciting proposals in December, we selected 6 projects to fully fund that we felt exemplified the work of the Oregon Girls Collaborative Project. Grant projects will be implemented from March through August, many taking place over the summer, as they expand opportunities for engaging girls in quality STEM experiences. Recipients include:
- Girls in STEM Summer Camp from High Desert Museum in Bend
- Science Factory Summer Science Adventures in Eugene
- Get with the Program! Robotics for Girls from Lake Oswego Robotics serving West Linn, Lake Oswego, Wilsonville, Tigard, Tualatin and Sherwood
- Girl Scouts and Curry Watersheds Quests in Port Orford
- Enrichment Academy SciGirls based Summer Camps from Salem-Keizer Education Foundation in Salem
- Oregon Tech Trek from Tillamook Bay Community College in Tillamook
Thank you to all of the applicants for taking time to thoughtfully design and promote quality STEM experiences for girls! For a more detailed description of the funded proposals, please visit our OGCP Mini Grant Page.
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OregonASK Roadshow Trainings in Newport and BendNewport
OregonASK is offering two half-day STEM trainings in Newport on May 16: Teaching Successful Science Lessons in Afterschool Time: May 16, 2015 9am-Noon
Location: Hatfield Marine Science Center
Cost: FREE Exploring the Engineering and Design Process with School Age Youth Time: May 16, 2015 1:00-4:00pm
Location: Hatfield Marine Science Center
Cost: FREE Bend
OregonASK will be in Bend on May 9, offering both half and full day STEM trainings. Trainings will include content from SciGirls, TechBridge, Afterschool Science Plus, and more! Stay tuned for more information. |
OregonASK Roadshow: OGCP Forums in Bend, Newport, and Klamath Falls
Oregon Girls Collaborative Project will be convening forums around the state with a focus on addressing issues of equity, access and quality as we provide programs and educators with the tools to serve more girls.
Read more about the forums and register HERE |
NCCE Conference: Aloha Instructors!
March 18-20 in Portland
NCCE is a professional learning organization for educators and hosts the largest education conference in the Northwest. Join them for their annual conference in March for keynote speakers, workshops, and an exhibition hall!
For more information, click here
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2015 Child Nutrition Program Conference
The 9th Annual Child Nutrition Program Conference will be held on Thursday, April 2nd in Eugene. Partners for a Hunger-Free Oregon invites education, nutrition, nonprofit professionals and hunger-prevention advocates to a day of planning, professional development, networking and innovative strategies in child nutrition programming. See the flyer here, or check out the website for more information. |
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Resources & Opportunities
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2015 Summer Support Grants for SFSP
Partners for a Hunger-Free Oregon would like to invite organizations to apply for the 2015 Summer Support Grant. Small grants of up to $5,000 will be available for start-up or expansion costs for Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) Sponsors, Sites, or program partners. The grant application will be open from March 9th - April 17th. This year, we are asking organizations to submit a Letter of Intent (LOI) form prior to the grant application, so that we can better anticipate the need and
support applicants throughout the process. The 8-question LOI should take between 10-30 minutes to complete, and can be accessed here
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2015 Summer Food Service Program Planning Survey
If you worked with a SFSP program in the past, or plan to work with one in 2015, Partners for a Hunger Free Oregon would greatly appreciate hearing about your experiences and challenges so they can target their outreach and develop and guide resources. The survey should take about 5-10 minutes to complete and can be accessed here.
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Better Together: A Resource Directory for Afterschool System Builders
The American Youth Policy Forum (AYPF) has created a helpful tool to support afterschool system building efforts. "Better Together: A Resource Directory for Afterschool System Builders," is a comprehensive directory that identifies over 50 organizations that offer resources and tools on afterschool system building. Staying on top of the ever-evolving list of national organizations and their work can be daunting, and this directory is a one-stop shop for information on the leading afterschool tools, information, and resources.
Download the Directory HERE |
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Funding Opportunities
Academic Enrichment grants provide funding for in-class and extracurricular programs that nurture the intellectual, artistic, and creative abilities of pre-12 grade students from low-income households.
Due April 15, 2015
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