Aftershool for All State Campaigns

Nine states have partnered with the Afterschool Alliance to launch co-branded state campaigns:  Afterschool for All Kansas, Wyoming, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, New Hampshire, Iowa, South Carolina, Oregon, New Jersey and Nevada. These campaigns represent a collective effort by state partners to build awareness and increase support for afterschool in their communities.  Joining forces with the Afterschool Alliance, state partners have launched Afterschool for All state campaigns to: 

•         Grow a database of community supporters

•         Build relationships with grass-top leaders

•         Strengthen grassroots advocacy efforts

•         Increase inter-organizational collaboration

•         Increase visibility in the community

Are you interested in starting an Afterschool for All advocacy campaign in your state?  To learn how, or for more information, contact Kamila at kthigpen@afterschoolalliance.org

Highlights of recent state campaign efforts:

Afterschool for All Arizona

Recruitment Goal: 1,000 partners

This spring, the Arizona Center for Afterschool Excellence (ACAE) held a rally at the state capitol and used the Afterschool for All campaign to successfully recruit close to sixty state legislators and their staff to sign on to the effort in support of Arizona’s afterschool programs.  Lisa Rice, Executive Director of ACAE says: “We have lots of news friends and introduced the word ‘afterschool’ into the vocabulary of all the legislators.  We’re looking forward to building on this foundation”. 

TIP: Many states host afterschool state rallies which can be leveraged to build your Afterschool for All database.  You can download the sample Afterschool for All petition to recruit constituents to sign up and present the list to your lawmakers as a symbol of community support for afterschool.  Also, you can download a sample invitation letter to invite lawmakers to sign on to Afterschool for All.

Afterschool for All Kansas

Recruitment Goal: 10,000 partners

The Kansas Enrichment Network (KEN) is using a baseball theme to recruit partners.  Marcia Dvorak, Executive Director of KEN is urging all Kansans to hit a “home-run for afterschool” by signing on to Afterschool for All Kansas.  Most recently, KEN successfully recruited the Kansas City T-Bones Baseball Team to be a part the Afterschool for All Kansas campaign.  The state network will work with the T-Bones to feature current players’ afterschool stories in its promotional materials.  KEN plans to organize a partner-signing event during a home game to recruit T-Bones fans to join Afterschool for All Arizona.  Marcia and her team also created a sample Afterschool for All advocacy calendar to map out year-round opportunities to recruit new partners for afterschool.

TIP: Sports groups are wonderful partners for afterschool.  They help highlight the great health and fitness benefits that afterschool programs offer to youth and are a great vehicle to reach new audiences.  The Afterschool for All list of national partners boasts some of the largest major sports leagues including the NFL, NBA, NHL and MLB.  You can download this sample letter to recruit the sports groups in your community.

Afterschool for All Georgia

Recruitment Goal: 45,000

In June 2008, the Georgia Afterschool Investment Council (GAIC) officially announced a partnership with the Georgia Rotary Club in a unique effort to engage business leaders around the afterschool issue.  Jill Riemer, Executive Director of the GAIC, and her staff developed a document - Ways the Rotary Can Get Involved in Afterschool - for the 5,000 rotary leaders to consider as they deepen their commitment to afterschool and summer learning programming throughout their region in Georgia.

TIP: Are you interested in leading a similar partnership in your community? Use this sample Afterschool for All invitation letter that you can send to members of your chamber of commerce and other business groups.  You can also use these talking points to aid you in the discussion about the many ways that afterschool programs boost productivity and help prepare our nation’s future workforce.