Afterschool Webinars

The National Town Hall celebrates the many ways afterschool programs have risen to the moment to help their communities respond to the pandemic, and looks ahead toward afterschool and summer learning programs' critical role in recovery. Read the follow-up Q&A document here.

When schools began to shut down many students and families turned to their afterschool providers to learn how to stay connected with the resources and information they would need. The briefing will focus on afterschool programs' role responding to the pandemic and for our nation's recovery. It will feature perspectives from education, afterschool programs, research, and economic development on the social, emotional, and academic support being provided to students and their families.

The COVID-19 pandemic is exposing and widening existing social justice gaps in education broadly and out-of-school time is no exception. Given this unprecedented time, we focus on real-time approaches that afterschool and summer learning programs can use to move the needle on issues of equity and access.

Recent developments in brain science have shown that adolescence is a crucial time for influencing social, emotional, and cognitive growth. In adolescence, the brain is particularly well-suited to acquire social and emotional competencies that are vital for youth to navigate the world, and yet we often see a fall-off in participation in youth development programs during this time.

You appreciate the value of afterschool, but what can you do to help rally more support around afterschool? If you feel that it is harder than it should be to grow support for afterschool programs—whether it is support from schools, from funders, or from policymakers—you are not alone. In particular, as the country grapples with the effects of COVID-19, the afterschool field faces unique challenges working to continue to support its students, families, staff, and community.

With the quick transition from in-person to virtual learning environments, afterschool providers are quickly adapting to serve young people in this new virtual world. But sifting through all of the resources that have flooded the field can be a tough task. Instead, we can learn from experts who have years of experience preparing educators to engage students in a virtual environment.

State and federal legislation and guidance around education, child care, human services, and child nutrition policy are rapidly changing under the COVID-19 pandemic. As these policies and guidance shift, it is critical to keep track of where things stand and what's coming up.

Many afterschool providers are struggling to provide opportunities for young people and families in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, and financial assistance and flexibility is often needed. We will talk through opportunities included in the three major COVID-19 response bills, as well as a glimpse into what’s proposed for next round of legislation.  

Join us for the second installment of this webinar series to learn what's at stake for afterschool and summer learning programs, and to review the evidence base as we prepare to meet with more than 200 Congressional offices to make the case for supporting funding for 21st Century Community Learning Centers and Child Care Development Funds, as well strengthening the Summer Food and Afterschool Meals programs.