News & Events

Youth Readiness for the Future

Findings from a recent Gallup student poll sample of youth aged 10-18 conducted in 2009-2010 are released in this report.  The poll tracks the hope, engagement and wellbeing of students which research has shown to be actionable targets and indicators of future success, with links to attendance, grades, achievement scores, retention and employment.

Read the full report and findings on the Gallup Poll website.

OSPI Announces 2010 State Testing Results Mixed

State Superintendent Randy Dorn announced at a news conference on August 31, that state testing scores from spring 2010 were mixed when compared to spring 2009.  Superintendent Dorn believes that increased cuts to education and transition to new state exams are primary reasons for spring 2010 results.

Of note to the afterschool field, Superintendent Dorn said in his words, "the results also reflect two straight years of cuts to the K-12 education budget as many crucial services, such as after-school and summer-school programs intended to assist the most challenging students, have been cut or eliminated."   Acknowledging the key role of afterschool and summer programs in supporting student's learning and achievement is commendable and a big step forward in linking the importance of out-of-school time to school success.

To read the full press release, visit OSPI's website.

TEDXRedmond: Organized by Students for Students ages 10-18

Organized by students for students ages 10 to 18, TEDxRedmond is an independent offshoot of TED, a California nonprofit devoted to ideas worth spreading.  Like all TED conferences, TEDxRedmond happening Saturday, September 18th at the Microsoft Conference Center in Redmond, will feature a series of presentations on a wide range of topics.  The only difference is that every TEDxRedmond presenter will be a middle school or high school age student!
 
Earlier this year, twelve-year-old Adora Svitak, one of the organizers of TEDxRedmond, was invited to speak at a TED conference held in Long Beach, California.  One of the youngest speakers ever to appear at TED, the experience motivated her to create an independent TED event for the kids of Washington State.
 
If you know anyone between 10 to 18 who might like to participate in this event, either as an attendee or a presenter, direct them to the TEDxRedmond website where they can learn more and sign up.

Role of Afterschool in Race to the Top reform efforts

On August 24th, the U.S. Department of Education announced the new round of winners of the Race to the Top education reform funding. The winners are: the District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, and Rhode Island.

The Afterschool Alliance has created a chart showing how each of the winners plan to use the Race to the Top dollars to support extended learning opportunities and afterschool programming to support student's learning.  To learn more about Race to the Top and afterschool, visit the Afterschool Alliance's website and see their chart tracking how the funds will be used by state to support afterschool programming.

Department of Early Learning seeks input on proposed rules allowing use of hand sanitizer

The Department of Early Learning is proposing to allow the use of hand sanitizer products with children over 12 months old with written permission from the child's parent or guardian. The proposed rules impact only licensed child care centers. Only one hearing will be held on at DEL headquarters on Sept. 8, 2010 from 6:30 to 9pm. For more details, visit the DEL's website.

School's Out Joins Excellent Schools Now

School's Out Washington has become a member of Excellent Schools Now, a coalition of education, business and community-based organizations in Washington State  working to achieve meaningful education reform that increases student achievement, closes the achievement gap and prepares students to be college and career-ready.

Excellent Schools Now currently includes the following members: Alliance for Education, ArtsEd Washington, Black Collective, Black Education Strategy Roundtable, Coalition for Equal Education Rights, College & Work Ready Agenda, College Spark, College Success Foundation, Executive Council for a Greater Tacoma, King County Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, League of Education Voters, Pacific Science Center, Partnership for Learning, Powerful Schools, Rainier Scholars, Seattle Biomedical Research Institute, Seattle Breakfast Group, Schools Out Washington, Social Venture Partners, Stand for Children, Tabor 100, Technology Access Foundation, Technology Alliance, WashACE, Washington Alliance of Black School Educators, Washington Biotechnology & Biomedical Association, Washington Coalition for School Libraries and Information Technology, Washington Global Health Alliance, Washington Roundtable, Washington State PTA and Washington Technology Industry Association.

National Association of Child Care Resource & Referral Agencies Released Latest Report around Cost of Care

NACCRRA released its latest report, Parents and the High Cost of Child Care: 2010 Update which reveals that child care prices continue to rise, despite the nation's economic downturn.  Specifically concerning school-age children in child care, the report found that parents of school-age children paid an average of up to $10,720 per year for part-time care in a center.

In short, the key findings show that:

  • Since 2000, the cost of child care has increased twice as fast as the median income of families with children.
  • The high cost of child care forces parents to make difficult decisions about where they place their children for care.
  • As child care costs rise, parents are shifting their children from licensed programs to informal care that potentially compromises their safety, health, and school readiness.

View the full-report on NACCRRA's website.

Seattle Youth & Families Initiative: Kids & Families Congress Report 2010

 The Seattle Youth & Families Initiative is a major initiative announced by City of Seattle Mayor McGinn during his inaugural address.  The goal of this initiaive is to identify challenges youth and families face and to collectively mobilize towards solutions so that all children in Seattle can succeed.

As part of this process, the city developed the Kids and Families Congress which included 5 large group workshops, 131 community caucuses, and a youth summit.  Delegates from these gatherings reviewed all the priorities identified by people participating in this process and refined them down to 35 issues that are most critical to address and organized them into six categories: health, neighborhood safety, race and social justice, strong neighborhoods, youth development, and education. 

Afterschool and youth development programming is a key component of several of the priority areas.  This is an opportunity for people in the AYD field in Seattle to ensure that we continue to be at the table as the priority areas are further fleshed out and policy and funding recommendations are developed.

To learn more and view the full report, click here.

Seattle Children's Survey

Many of us in the state of Washington are working on various projects to improve the welfare of children and families.  Seattle Children’s is seeking to assemble a comprehensive list of programs and activities that support parents in Washington State. The project is evaluating how we can support parent education and child abuse and neglect prevention. Please link to this brief survey on your parent-specific programs.  Seattle Children's appreciate a few moments of your time to help fill out this survey.

Afterschool Funding At-Risk

Afterschool providers, supporters and working families across the nation were disappointed last week when the Senate Appropriations Committee voted to allow 21st Century Community Learning Centers (CCLC) afterschool funds to be diverted to programs that would extend the school day.

The Afterschool Alliance, a national organization working to ensure that all children have access to quality, affordable afterschool programs, is working on ensuring the final appropriations bill based by Congress preserves the critical 21st CCLC funding.  To learn more and to see how you can help, visit the Afterschool Alliance website.

Make it Stick!

Afterschool and Summer Learning Programs Make Learning Stick!  High-quality afterschool and summer learning programs have long demonstrated that when academics are connected to the real world, learning becomes relevant and it sticks!  The Mott Foundation is proud to announce the launch of the Make It Stick campaign which showcases afterschool and summer learning programs across the country that are already making a difference. 
 
Leaders in afterschool and summer learning are critical to building robust content that can help your colleagues across the country make the case that high-quality afterschool and summer learning programs provide:
•       More young people with engaging learning opportunities tied to academics
•       More collaboration between schools and communities
•       More structure at the state level supporting innovation and improvement
•       More research on what works
•       More of what makes learning stick!

Visit MakeItStick.org at http://makeitstick.org/san today to sign up for updates, share your stories, use the toolkit to spread the word and much more!

New Resource on STEM Learning After School

The Frontiers in Urban Science Exploration Resource Guide, produced by the Collaborative for Building After-School Systems (CBASS) is a new resource to promote informal science education in afterschool programs.  The Resource Guide describes Frontiers in Urban Science Exploration (FUSE), created by The After-School Corporation (TASC) based in New York City to stimulate a culture shift that leads to greater opportunities for kids to experience informal science education afterschool, as well as in school and during summers. The guide, part of a national initiative to promote FUSE, presents promising STEM models from around the country and provides links and information about STEM research reports, curricula and evaluation resources. FUSE and this resource guide were developed with support from Noyce Foundation.

The resource guide is available through the CBASS website at: http://www.afterschoolsystems.org/content/document/detail/3040/

New Reports Examine Access to Out-Of-School Time Programs

Two new reports funded by The Wallace Foundation examine challenges in expanding OST opportunities: lack of adequate summer programming and strategies for ensuring participation among older youth. To access the reports, visit the National League of Cities website.

Many municipal leaders recognize that promoting participation in high-quality OST programs can advance other city priorities — including decreasing dropout rates, lowering juvenile crime rates and strengthening workforce development.  The National League of Cities Institute for Youth, Education & Families helps municipal leaders take action on behalf of children, youth and families providing resources on afterschool and youth development programs.

STARS System Replaced by "MERIT"

Department of Early Learning launched the first phase of the Managed Education Registry and Information Tool (MERIT) in June for early learning trainers and training organizations. MERIT replaces the State Training and Registry System (STARS) database that DEL took offline in April to build a stronger system. In this first phase, STARS-approved trainers and training organizations can log in to add information about available trainings. DEL hosted a webinar for trainers and training organizations to introduce MERIT.

If you are a current STARS-approved trainer or training organization, you can log on to MERIT now.  If you need help with your login and password, please send an e-mail requesting assistance.  Early learning professionals, including child care providers, will get MERIT access in the near future so they can enter information about their training history, and search available trainings.

DEL Working Connections Child Care program - NEW RULE starts August 15, 2010

The Department of Early Learning (DEL) has adopted changes to rules for the Working Connections Child Care (WCCC) subsidy program to implement a new state law, House Bill 3141.  The rule extends WCCC eligibility to 12 months for families who have a child enrolled in Head Start, Early Head Start or an Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program. The amended rule (Washington Administrative Code 170-290-0082) was filed on July 15, 2010 and takes effect on August 15, 2010.

Click here to review the final rule on the DEL website, as well as the "Concise Explanatory Statement" - DEL's written response to comments received during the public input period.

Let's Read Let's Move Campaign

Let's Read. Let's Move seeks to combat childhood obesity and summer reading loss by engaging youth in summer reading and physical activity, as well as by providing access to healthy, affordable food. This initiative is an Administration-wide effort led by the Corporation for National and Community Service in collaboration with First Lady Michelle Obama and five federal agencies - U.S. Department of Education, Department of Interior, Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Agriculture, and Institute of Museums and Libraries.

There are several ways to take part in this initiative:

  • Share stories of how your summer program is helping kids learn and stay fit.
  • Check out the new "Let's Move" website for ways educators, parents and community leaders can make changes to improve the health of our nation's kids.
  • Watch the recording of a live video chat on the initiative with First Lady Michelle Obama. 

Learn about the "Summer of a Million Books" campaign to get books into the hands of kids, a step toward fighting summer learning loss.

We also have a great resource here in Washington State.  Page Ahead is a statewide organization that provides new books and develops reading activities that empower at-risk children.  Page Ahead has partnered with School's Out Washington this year on our Feed Your Brain project piloting a summer program providing each child in a Feed Your Brain site with 4 new books over the summer.