Breakfast Club Blog

The BOOST Breakfast Club Blog is a curated space where bloggers from around the world contribute content on a continual basis about a variety of topics relevant to in and out-of-school time. The BOOST Breakfast Club blog is at the heart of an ongoing dialogue where expanded learning and education professionals share their personal thoughts and stories from the in and out-of-school time field. They also tell us what they ate for breakfast!

The views and opinions expressed in this blog are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any other agency, organization, employer, or company. Enjoy the brain food.

The BOOST Breakfast Club Blog is Brain Food for In and Out-of-School Time Leaders!

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What Is So Special About After School?

After 20+ years of working in after school, I have learned that there are many things that make after school special. Some might be apparent, but others might be less obvious. One go-to resource for me is information from the Afterschool Alliance, This is Afterschool, which reminds us of all of the benefits of after school. They sum it up in a few words. “Decades of research prove afterschool helps kids attend school more often, get better grades, and build foundational skills, like communicatio...Read More

Staff Meetings: Lackluster To Brilliant

When was the last time you left a staff meeting thinking, “Wow, that was a great staff meeting!” Are those crickets I hear? Believe it or not, just the other day I left the office thinking just that. How you ask? This is how… Staff participated. Staff dictated the pace of the meeting. Staff cared. Here are the things that make our staff meetings successful. Strategic & planned ahead: The staff meeting was planned with a goal that the team could accomplish – something small and at...Read More

Getting Your Students to Fall in Love with Physical Activity

Love is in the air! Valentine’s Day celebrates love, and it doesn’t always have to be romantic. Love boils down to a passion for something (or someone!), and so we can celebrate the holiday by sharing the love for physical activity with students in your expanded learning program. When you feel passionate about something, it shows. Your enthusiasm, energy, and enjoyment are palpable, visible as the expression on your face, gestures with your hands, and the sound of your voice. When you talk about...Read More

The Beginning Of Wisdom: Part One

Editor’s Note: This blog was first posted on Tuesday, January 14, 2020, and is being reposted with permission from The Leadership Program. As we are in the middle of another January, many of us are also already likely facing a reckoning of the status of our new year’s resolutions. Already, they may be sputtering; they may even still be stuck at the start. Resolutions are tricky because they are so often tied up in an accounting of our perception of our success or failure, basically as huma...Read More

Lessons From The Backseat

I love to drive. Cars, motorcycles, ideas, discussions-you name it. I, like so many, enjoy and thrive off of the ability to be in control of where I am going and how I am getting there. As a facilitator of learning, I am also very comfortable in the driver’s seat. I know the desired goals and objectives for each learning experience I am in charge of, either designing or implementing or both. And, like many others in the field of education, the thrill of seeing the outcomes of these experie...Read More

Encourage Staff Well-Being: 3 Things to Try This Week

I recently spoke at the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA) Conference alongside partners from the National Summer Learning Association, Afterschool Alliance, and Grow Appalachia. A common theme of our 3 workshops was the interconnectedness of physical health and social-emotional health to promote overall well-being. While at the NRPA Conference, we released an exciting new brief, Afterschool: Fostering Protective Factors that Can Last a Lifetime. The resource emphasizes the importan...Read More

Shine On!

In the Expanded Learning field, we prioritize building personal connections and creating a sense of belonging. We all have a why or purpose for what we do, and, while it is often altruistic, we’re all human and seek some level of recognition and appreciation. When we are at our best, we shine full of hope and with an energy that keeps us motivated to push ahead. The goal of this blog is to share my perspective on why it is important to work collectively and shine together, especially when in a p...Read More

Leaders Who Inspire Us: Jabez LeBret

Editor’s Note: Continuing with our Leaders Who Inspire Us campaign, check out today’s featured leader Jabez LeBret! Keep an eye out for more inspirational people in our field who are change-makers. If you want to recommend someone, please send a note to [email protected]. Jabez LeBret has been homeless, is a high school dropout, and was on a path to nowhere. After getting his GED, Jabez studied finance and marketing at Gonzaga University. He went on to become a financial analy...Read More

What’s Driving Your Work?

  I recently had the honor of participating in an executive transition for the California School-Age Consortium (CalSAC). It was my first executive transition, so admittedly I don’t have anything to compare it to, however, I was inspired by how we, both board and staff, continued to keep values at the center of the process. Every step of the way we asked ourselves, does this align with the values of the organization? In the end, that resulted in an authentic interview process and a new exec...Read More

Showing The Broken Places PT 1

This blog was originally posted on https://www.tlpnyc.com/blog/the-broken-places on Friday, September 13, 2019, and has been reposted with permission from Breakfast Club Blogger Erika Petrelli. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ I’ve come to understand something in the last few months that is in direct opposition to everything I’ve decided that I “knew” for as many years as I can remember. This realization is both shoc...Read More

Fostering The Idea Of Opportunity

This blog was first published on the MCUVO!CE website and appears with permission by the author, first-time Breakfast Club Blogger Marcus Strother. _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________ As an educator, I have been able to work with a multitude of students. As a professional, I have been able to learn from a number of great mentors. I have allowed both of these opportunities to guide me on my journey as a youth advocate. I ...Read More

Building The Capacity Of Front Line Staff

Editor’s Note: Please welcome brand new Breakfast Club Blogger, Brandon Alvarez. Brandon is an experienced Expanded Learning practitioner. He is currently a Program Manager with Sacramento Chinese Community Service Center, overseeing a robust high school ASSETs program. His other duties include participating in professional development leadership teams, local youth advisory boards, and managing the marketing and giving affairs for his agency. As an emerging leader in the field, Brandon asp...Read More