Category: News

Best Starts for Kids Expanded Learning Awardees Announced!

By School's Out Washington

School’s Out Washington, in partnership with King County Best Starts for Kids (BSK), is excited to announce the BSK Expanded Learning cohort for 2022–2025! In total, 65 awardees will receive $16,102,303 in funding over the next three years. The BSK Expanded Learning initiative provides funding and resources for expanded learning providers across King County to increase access to high quality expanded learning opportunities for youth (ages 5–13) who are BIPOC and/or living in poverty. This is accomplished through two primary funding models:  BIPOC-led organizations that are embedded in culturally specific or cross-cultural communities of color Place-based collaboratives that are made … [ ]

Resources for our community

By School's Out Washington

While we all deal with many levels of our own grief, anger, and despair with the recent massacres, we offer these resources to the frontline youth workers who are undoubtedly also helping young people with their feelings and fears. Sending love and care to our young people, families, and educators, and especially the Uvalde community. Helping Students After a School Shooting from American School Counselor Association School Shooting Resources from National Child Traumatic Stress Network A Kids Book About School Shootings (free) How to Talk to Kids about Shootings and Gun Violence from Scientific American

2022 Legislative Session sees wins for youth development

By School's Out Washington

The 2022 Washington State Legislative Session ended on March 10th with several youth development-related budget wins, including funding for mental health, additional child care subsidies, and more. And there were policy wins as well. The first was a behavioral health request ($1M) based on a pilot at the Boys & Girls Clubs that allows youth to access mental health services on-site and provides funding for mental health-related training for staff. The funding will go towards the pilot as well as for training for other providers. Child care received additional funding to increase subsidy rates by 16% ($45.9M) as well as … [ ]

Washington parents say afterschool programs provide the social, developmental, mental health supports many students need now.

By School's Out Washington

Most Washington state parents see afterschool programs as part of the solution to the social and mental health struggles so many students are experiencing right now, with 5 in 6 saying these programs give students time to engage with peers and reduce unproductive screen time, and 8 in 10 saying they help build confidence. That is according to Promoting Healthy Futures: Afterschool Provides the Supports Parents Want for Children’s Well-Being, a household survey released today by the Afterschool Alliance.   Afterschool programs are especially important now, as the country faces a youth mental health crisis. In December, the U.S. Surgeon General issued a … [ ]

Best Starts for Kids Expanded Learning RFP is now open!

By School's Out Washington

School’s Out Washington (SOWA), in partnership with Best Start for Kids (BSK), is seeking proposals for the 2022-2025 King County Best Starts for Kids Expanded Learning Initiative.  The RFP and application are available here. Proposals are due on Wednesday, April 27, 2022 by 11:59 PM. Investments in the BSK Expanded Learning Initiative will strengthen and increase expanded learning opportunities for King County young people (ages 5-13) who are BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) and/or living in poverty. Expanded learning provides young people with high-quality programming through a range of activities including academic enrichment, cultural and social development activities, … [ ]

A statement from SOWA about harm we caused

By School's Out Washington

Dear Community,  We are writing to acknowledge that we recently caused harm to Key to Change, an organization that we featured in our Community Spotlight story series. For the purposes of transparency and accountability, we want to share what occurred, our learnings, and some of the steps we are taking to ensure this does not happen again.   On February 14, as part of a Community Spotlight series on Black-led youth arts programs for Black History month, we featured Key to Change, a Black-led nonprofit that inspires underserved youth through world-class music instruction and leadership development.  Our communications team mistakenly … [ ]