• This past March several schools in Houston Independent School District (HISD) in Texas began serving free afterschool meals to students. Meals will be offered through the district to students attending 21^st Century Community Learning Centers (21^st CCLC) at 32 HISD schools to ensure students receive healthy and nutritious meals on a regular basis. The meals are made possible through the CACFP At-Risk Afterschool Meals Program and the district hopes to expand meal service to 50 schools next school year. The local CBS affiliate reported that district officials see the latest endeavor as one that is beneficial for students beyond measure: “For some children, these dinner meals may be the only meal they eat until the next school day so this program will strive to provide them the proper nutrition they need for a healthy development,” said Jonnelle Hollins, manager of HISD afterschool programs. “Offering free dinner at school will ensure that thousands of students have access to the recommended three meals a day.”
• This spring, the Roosevelt School District in Phoenix, Arizona, pilot tested an afterschool meal program that allows students participating in afterschool programs to have a balanced meal. The ABC affiliate in Phoenix reported that the school principal at C. O. Greenfield School has seen the effects of hunger in his students and often works with local food banks to ensure families have food at home.
• Bucyrus City Schools in north central Ohio recently added afterschool meals to its menu of meals served to students. The afterschool meal program was launched as a pilot program this month and serves students in the BEST (Building Excellent Students Together) afterschool program, and could expand afterschool meal service to more students and sites for the 2013-2014 school year. The BEST program serves elementary students in grades 3-5 through the 21^st CCLC initiative.
• In Spokane, Washington, the Northeast Youth Center is serving afterschool meals six days a week through CACFP.  A recent meal, reported by the Spokane Spokesman, included a teriyaki chicken sandwich, green beans, orange slices and milk. “We are pretty excited about this,” said Kate Zehner Green, executive director and accounts manager at the youth center, while watching the children eat. “This is why we are here. There is such a need in this neighborhood.” Green said the youth center had been working on bringing in an afterschool meal program for some time, but once the center applied for this program, it took less than a month to get it going.

Afterschool programs are able to participate in the At-Risk Afterschool Meal Program as sponsors or as feeding sites by: partnering with their school nutrition department or food bank, preparing their own meals, or providing pre-assembled meals by working with a vendor. Learn more about the different CACFP At-Risk Afterschool Meal Program options here.

…I am also pleased to see this budget requests a nine percent, or $100 million, increase for the 21^st Century Community Learning Centers… Mr. Secretary, you know some of my concerns in this area, I am concerned that the Department's policies seem to place an emphasis on extended learning time programs over traditional after school programs, which is not what Congress authorized this program to do. I am concerned that this particular request eliminates the current formula funding to states, in favor of a national competition.

Another noteworthy finding from the report is that the cost of child care has increased over time, although the average percentage of family income spent on child care stayed constant, hovering around 7 percent, between 1997 and 2011.  The average weekly cost of child care for families with employed mothers increased from $84 in 1985 (constant 2011 dollars) to $143 in 2011.  Looking specifically at school-age care costs, the report finds that the average cost for school-age care was $124 in 2011.  Among families living below the poverty line, the average weekly cost for school-age child care was $88, or nearly one-third of the family’s income.  Of particular concern is the fact that among families who paid for child care, those below the poverty line spent more than four times the percentage of their income on school-age child care as other families who were living at or above the poverty line (29 percent compared with 6 percent).

Based on these cost figures, it seems safe to assume that families are not getting much help with their child care costs.  In fact, only 5 percent of families report receiving help paying for school-age child care and just 3 percent report that they received help from the government. 

While there is some good news regarding self care in the report, it is troubling that there are 4.2 million kids, ages 5 to 14 and living with their mom, who didn’t have a regular child care arrangement.  Five percent of kids ages 5 to 11 were on their own in 2011 and 27 percent of kids ages 12 to 14 were on their own.  On average these kids spend 7 hours per week with no supervised care.  These numbers are in line with findings from our 2009 America After 3PM report that 4 percent of kids in kindergarten through 5^th grade and 30 percent of kids in 6^th through 8^th grade were on their own.   Given the findings regarding the high cost of school-age care and the lack of assistance in paying for care, it’s not surprising that the number of kids in self-care, while on the decline, still continues to be high.

We know that the hours between 3 and 6 p.m. are the peak hours for juvenile crime and experimentation with drugs, alcohol and other risky behaviors, which is why these numbers illustrate the need for increased investment in afterschool programs to ensure that more kids have the opportunity to participate in programs that will keep them safe, provide academic enrichment and support their working parents.   

How kids spend their time during the hours after school is a primary concern for the Afterschool Alliance.  I’m happy to share that we’re in the middle of planning for our next round of America After 3PM, the largest national household survey that looks at what kids are doing during the afternoon.  The survey provides incredibly useful and relevant data for parents, the afterschool field and policy makers.  I can’t wait to see what insights we gain from the survey this time around, especially taking into account the potential impact of sequestration on families, afterschool programs and communities.  Stay tuned.

Additional Education Department funding that supports afterschool and summer learning includes $14.5 billion (level with FY2012) for Title I and $300 million for Promise Neighborhoods. The Safe, Successful and Healthy Students program would consolidate safe and drug free schools activities as well as school counseling and the Physical Education Program into one $280 million program. Note that all budget request amounts in the president's 2014 budget do not reflect the sequester and assume Congress will restore the funds cut by the March 1, 2013, deadline. The Department of Education’s budget summary is online.

Other budget news for the afterschool community:

School Safety

The president has proposed a new, comprehensive plan, Now is the Time, to protect schools and communities by reducing gun violence and providing resources to schools. Approximately $112 million in new funds are targeted to help to prepare schools for emergencies, create nurturing school climates and provide intensive supports to students who are exposed to violence. Other activities include collecting data on indicators of school safety and providing guidance on school discipline policies.

High School Redesign

Another new initiative is the $300 million High School Redesign program that that promotes innovative ways to prepare youth to be college and career ready, including, “career-related experiences or competencies, obtained through organized internships and mentorships, structured work-based learning, and other related experiences.”

National Service

The budget requests $1.06 billion for the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS), roughly even with the Fiscal Year 2012 enacted level.  The funding level supports 82,000 AmeriCorps members, includes $49 million for the Social Innovation Fund, and creates the George H.W. Bush Volunteer Generation Fund, a $10 million program focused on improving the capacity of nonprofits to effectively manage and sustain volunteers. The CNCS AmeriCorps and VISTA programs help support afterschool programs.

Child Care Development Fund (CCDF)

The budget provides an additional $200 million in discretionary funds for states to support high-quality child care (including health and safety) in 2014 as well as a $500 million increase in mandatory funding for CCDF. Over the next 10 years, a total of $7 billion is invested to maintain the availability of child care subsidies. The budget invests $1.4 billion in new Early Head Start-Child Care Partnerships to support states and communities in expanding the availability of high-quality learning opportunities for our youngest children.

Community Service Block Grant (CSBG)

The budget cuts CSBG by almost half, providing just $350 million for FY2014. The budget proposes to use competition to target the funds to high-performing agencies that are most successful in meeting important community needs.

Juvenile Justice

The budget renews efforts to promote juvenile justice and prevent youth violence. The budget provides $332 million for the Department of Justice's Juvenile Justice programs and includes evidence-based investments to prevent youth violence, including $25 million to fund the Community-Based Violence Prevention Initiative to provide grants to replicate successful community-based interventions to control shootings and other serious gang violence, and $4 million for the National Forum on Youth Violence Prevention, which provides assistance for selected communities across the nation to develop and implement youth violence strategies. The budget also includes $20 million for the Juvenile Justice Realignment Incentive Grants, which, in tandem with the $30 million reserved for Juvenile Accountability Block Grants, will assist states that are pursuing evidence-based, juvenile justice system alignment to foster better outcomes for young people, less costly use of incarceration and increased public safety. Further, the budget makes available $23 million for research and pilot projects focused on developing appropriate responses to youth exposed to violence.

STEM

The budget proposes a comprehensive reor­ganization of STEM education programs to increase the impact of federal investments in four areas: K-12 instruc­tion, undergraduate education, graduate fellowships, and education activities that typically take place outside the classroom—all with a focus on increasing participation and opportunities for individuals from groups histori­cally underrepresented in these fields. The reorganiza­tion involves a consolidation of nearly 90 programs across 11 different agencies.  Nearly $180 million will be redirected from these consolidated programs toward the Department of Education, National Science Foundation and the Smithsonian Institution to implement core initiatives in these four pri­ority areas.

The Department of Education will restructure its own existing efforts to lead an initiative around improving K-12 STEM education. The budget invests $150 million, redirected from within the department and from other agencies, to support STEM Innovation Networks, which would be districts or consor­tia of districts working in partnership with universities, science agencies, museums, businesses and other edu­cational entities. These public-private partnerships will work to harness local, regional and national resources to dramatically transform teaching and learning by im­plementing research-based practices, supporting inno­vation and building capacity at both school and district levels.

Also included in the Department of Education budget is $80 million for STEM Teacher Pathways to offer competitive grants to recruit, train and place talented recent college graduates and mid-career professionals in the STEM fields in high-need schools and $35 million to establish a new STEM Master Teacher Corps.  STEM Master Teacher Corps members would make a multi-year commitment to build a community of teaching practice where they live, help students excel in math and science while taking on leadership and mentorship roles in their schools and communities and the broader STEM field, and receive annual stipends on top of their base salaries for their service in the Corps. Recognizing many agencies currently engage in various infor­mal education activities to get the public, students and teachers interested in their missions and research, the budget redirects $25 million from these agencies to the Smithsonian Institution to improve the reach of infor­mal education activities by ensuring that they are aligned with state standards and are relevant to the classroom. Look for follow-up post on the STEM aspects of the budget early next week.

Take Action!  The president’s budget is typically released in early February and the late release in mid-April follows the passage of separate FY2014 budget resolutions last month by both the House and the Senate. The budget request now goes to Congress, where budget and appropriations deliberations for FY2014 are underway.  House and Senate appropriations committees are holding hearings this week and next week to hear details of the education budget request from Sec. Duncan.  Friends of afterschool programs can contact their Members of Congress to express support for 21^st CCLC and federal funding for afterschool programs.

Key findings from the report include:

• Students in grades 4 through 11 participating in the ACE program were less likely to have disciplinary incidents compared to non-participants.  Compared to non-participants, attending the ACE program for less than 30 days decreased the rate of disciplinary incidents by 6 percent, and attending the program for at least 60 days decreased the rate of disciplinary incidents by 11 percent.
• ACE program low attendees—students who participated in the program at least 30 days—in the 4^th through 11^th grades saw a 14 percent decrease in the rate of being absent and high attendees—students who participated in the program for at least 60 days—saw a 15 percent decrease in absences when compared to non-participants.  Both low- and high-attending students in the 9^th through 11^th grades saw a greater reduction in absences, 19 percent and 18 percent respectively.
• Both low and high attendees of the ACE program saw a significant increase in likelihood of being promoted to the next grade.  For grades 4-5 and 7-11, low attendees were 43 percent more likely to be promoted to the next grade compared to non-attendees, and high attendees were 47 percent more likely to be promoted to the next grade. 
• Among low attendees in 9^th grade through 11^th grade, the likelihood of being promoted to the next grade increased by 79 percent.  Among high-attending high school students, the likelihood of being promoted to the next grade increased by 97 percent when compared to students not participating in the program. 
• ACE programs characterized as having a high point of service (POS) quality had a greater effect in terms of supporting a decrease in disciplinary incidents and supporting student grade promotion.  

Another important aspect of the study is the discussion surrounding the types of instructional approaches associated with high-quality activities.  In addition to finding that high program quality was related to better student outcomes, the report outlined that a program’s clarity of purpose, the intentional use of time, and an active and interactive instructor were the three types of approaches associated with high-quality activities.  Quality improvement is an ongoing and iterative process, and these tools can help afterschool programs continue to provide the best programming and support to ensure their students’ future success.

Despite the evidence demonstrating that 21^st CCLC programs have a positive effect on children’s academics, behavior and school attendance, the House budget currently extends the 5 percent sequestration cuts, reducing funding for the 21^st CCLC program by approximately $57.9 million.  This cut will mean that close to 58,000 kids will lose the ability to participate in an afterschool or summer learning program.  If you’re interested in learning what you can do to help take action against these cuts, visit our Policy & Action Center.