A shared vision for using 21st CCLC funds as a platform for improving the lives of students and families, and for contributing to community cohesion, is an important precursor to leveraging the full potential of community and school partnerships.
Join the American Institutes for Research’s Jaime Singer, Beyond the Bell director and senior technical assistance consultant, and our team of AIR experts every other month for a short webinar featuring one of the 96 tools available in the Beyond the Bell Toolkit. Hear from AIR experts on topics related ...
Living with a serious medical condition can be frightening and isolating for children. SeriousFun Children’s Network offers camps that “create opportunities for children and their families to reach beyond serious illness and discover joy, confidence, and a new world of possibilities, always free of charge.” In this Q&A, AIR's Allison ...
Both the formal and informal education communities are increasingly focused on fostering opportunities for social and emotional learning (SEL) and the link between SEL and youth outcomes. This self-reflection tool is designed to help afterschool program staff reflect upon their own social and emotional competencies and their ability to support ...
Researchers, practitioners, policymakers, and funders are increasingly aware of the powerful potential for summertime experiences and the need to design, implement, and continuously improve summertime experiences for all.
To improve the outcomes of adult learners, programs and educators need research they can trust and readily use to inform practice. AIR contributes to the research base about what works for adult learners by conducting rigorous and policy-relevant studies focused on teaching and learning.
Effective and thoughtful planning is the first step in developing afterschool quality standards. In this phase, you will build a strong case for establishing quality standards. In the sections that follow, we outline the principal components of planning to develop quality standards.
Afterschool staff working with youth are essential partners in any program’s efforts to implement quality programming. Ultimately, strong relationships are key to whether youth feel safe and can authentically engage with peers and adults. Building staff members’ capacity to strengthen relationships and align program offerings to quality standards will help ...
The expanded learning field continues to bring multiple stakeholders together to advance program quality and research. This article from the Journal of Expanded Learning Opportunities features a dialogue on the topic of program quality in expanded learning programs between Michael Funk, afterschool division director for the California Department of Education, ...
Many innovative workforce training programs have sought to make a meaningful impact on low-income individuals’ lives through training and employment supports, though most fail to show long-term positive effects. AIR is seeking to partner with best-in-class sectoral programs to provide technical assistance and research expertise that strengthen their programming and ...