October 24, 2017

Whether your 21st CCLC program is new or well-established, new students, families and teachers arrive every year. Refresh your messaging often to catch attention. Every spring, summer and fall, reach out with a message that pops and bring in new students, families, volunteers and partners. 

Tip 1. Target messages to each audience. Each group has a different perspective, and wants you to address its concerns. Once you have identified the students who meet your admission criteria, create invitations and messages that will appeal to them and other stakeholders

- Students want to have fun while they learn outside of school. They want activities that respond to their interests and look different from the school day.

- Families want their children to continue learning, do their homework and enjoy social interactions.

- Teachers want their students to get targeted support and make connections between academics and everyday life.

- Community members want young people to engage with local activities and issues in productive ways. And, they want to know how they can support better educational outcomes.

Tip 2. Deliver your messages through multiple and appropriate channels. Do quick surveys of stakeholder groups to find out which method each prefers.

- Print media, such as newspaper stories and flyers, can help you reach families and the community. Use languages other than English, so you touch everyone.

- Broadcast media, such as television and radio, also reach community and family members. Be sure to invite foreign language outlets to learn about your program.

- Be active online. Keep your website up to date, and be smart about using Facebook, Twitter and other social media to promote program enrollment deadlines and special events. Remember to protect student privacy, and check with the school or district about getting release forms before posting photos or videos that show students.

- Get into the community. Set up information tables or displays at street fairs, and outside grocery stores or at farmers markets. Visit families in their homes or at gathering places such as churches and cultural festivals.

Tip 3. Live the messages every day. The positive environment you create will keep students coming and encourage family engagement!

- Offer professional learning events for staff and partners to help them support positive youth development adult-child relationship building, student voice and choice, and 21st century skill development.

- Welcome family and community members to your advisory board and program planning team, and hold special events that bring everyone to the program to celebrate student learning and accomplishments.

- Hold special celebrations that bring everyone to the program to witness student learning and accomplishments.

Resources

Remember, although everything here comes from the Summer Learning course, it also applies to school-year programs.

Creating Positive Environments for Summer Learning
Get research-based tips for supporting student engagement and positive youth development.

Youth Recruitment Planner
You and your colleagues can get into the nitty-gritty of intentional recruitment with this tool.

Facilitating Positive Youth Development Training to Go
This ready-to-use presentation can be customized to your needs for professional learning with staff and partners.

Developing 21st Century Skills Training Starter
Everyone can benefit from better skills in communication, collaboration, critical thinking and creativity. This training starter can help staff and partners learn to support skill development for students.

October 24, 2017

Y4Y is pleased to offer a series of webinars designed specifically for 21st CCLC state coordinators/directors by the U.S. Department of Education. These recorded events are available for viewing at your convenience right here. This blog presents highlights from “New State Directors,” and you can download a copy of the blog to keep it handy for quick reference. For other resources that support your work, click on State Coordinators on the Y4Y home page.

New State Directors Webinar

Every new job comes with a learning curve. Perhaps, on day one as coordinator/director of your state’s 21st CCLC program, that curve felt steeper than expected. Fortunately, resources are available, and this webinar offers information about where to find them. It draws on the experiences of two state coordinators: Sonia Johnson of Oklahoma and Haydee Perez-Livingston of New Jersey. Here’s an overview of their advice. 

Advice

- Give yourself time. Learn, listen, assess program status and figure out how things work. 

- Don’t be afraid to make decisions. Use federal and state guidance to make educated decisions; you can always make adjustments next year.

- Act in the best interest of the program, keeping students and community in mind.

- Have a growth mind-set. Consider the successes and challenges you hear from other states, and use them to revisit policies. Recognize that this field is growing and changing, and you need to look at the big picture. 

Sonia Johnson noted that partner connections help her model what it looks like to connect to the school day and to incorporate other elements of high-quality programs. As she put it, “These connections to other organizations help me see how it all fits together in supporting the whole child and improving education.” 

Find Written Guidance

- Federal laws: The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), the Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA)

- Code of Federal Regulations: Title 2: Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards (Uniform Guidance); Title 34, Parts 74-99: Education Department General Administrative Regulations (EDGAR)

- U.S. Department of Education Non-Regulatory Guidance for 21st CCLC Grants

- State guidance: State laws, agency policies, state education plan, grant guidance, 21st CCLC request for proposal/application form

Links to all federal documents are available on this 21st CCLC program page.

Build Relationships

- State department of education: The previous 21st CCLC state coordinator/director, the coordinators/directors of federal Title offices, and your 21st CCLC state-level evaluator. 

- Budget office and grants management office (if your state has one): Get help with finance and grant review/administration.

- State agencies with overlapping missions: The departments of labor and health and human services, among others, may have policies and programs that connect to 21st CCLC activities.

- Your 21st CCLC grantees: Connect through regional meetings, conference calls and the listserv. Let them know about state-level information and resources. Also, get to the actual program sites to build relationships and find out what works and what doesn’t in the various communities.

- Your 21st CCLC peers: Other state coordinators/directors willingly share knowledge by phone, email or listserv. Depending on your need, reach out to states that have geographic or grant size similarities. The ed.gov website provides contact lists and other information about state grants.

- Federal venues: The Department’s 21st CCLC program officers and the 21st CCLC Summer Institute are great resources for professional learning and networking. 

- Partners: Remember that “community” is in the program name. Connect with community partners, institutions of higher education, and state and national organizations to help build capacity and to cultivate potential grantees. Focus on groups that relate to issues important in your state, such as health, early childhood or other areas.