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Author: Julie McClure
Fear and Deportation
What can after school programs do to support children who are experiencing fears related to the impacts of deportation? Many of our programs work with children and families who have deep fears about the changing immigration climate and increased deportations. Knowing what to do to support students and families on these issues can be hard for staff. They want to help but do not have expertise in this area. They also want to know what is ok to say and do in their role. Here are some actions that c... Read More
5 Strategies to Get into the Groove of Back-to-School
Now that we are a few weeks into the school year, I thought it would be a good time to reflect on how to get into the groove. We have weathered the lead up to program start up and are now several weeks in…so, how do we turn the corner, how do we get ourselves on track for success throughout the year, how do we get into the groove? (play the Madonna song for inspiration!) Here are some of my strategies: 1. Celebrate start up success. Celebrate getting through start up activities and acknowl... Read More
Exploring the Utility of Quality Assessment
As funders, partners, and education departments require out-of-school time programs do some type of quality assessment, I thought it would be timely to discuss successful strategies for implementing a quality assessment process. The last thing we want is to do the work to conduct an assessment and then have the results just sit on a shelf until a report is due…but we all know that can happen if we don’t have a plan for how to use the information to inform practice. Below are some app... Read More
Investing in Quality With Increasing Costs
As after school leaders, we are used to begging and borrowing, making a lot out of a little, and operating at beyond peak levels of productivity to make our programs the best they can be for our students and their families. We want to get the most out of our budgets and that is a good thing—but there are limits. Our after school programs have evolved so much in the past decade. They have moved from programs that provide academic enrichment, homework support, active recreation, and clubs to even ... Read More
Learning Communities
To promote an environment of innovation and improvement, one strategy we employ is engaging our staff in developing and then sharing their expertise with their peers. It is in an effort to promote a learning community philosophy to encourage leadership, promote learning, and foster expertise. Through the learning community we are focusing on intentional personal and program improvement, fostering expertise and leadership, and creating internal capacity for staff development. Promoting Personal &... Read More
Recognize!
The holiday season is upon us — a time of year when we recognize those in our personal lives we are thankful for. It is also a great time to think about recognizing those in our work life. Things can get so busy during the year that we forget to let those we work with know how much we value their contributions. That is why having a Recognition Plan can be so valuable. Those that work in our after school programs, and with our most vulnerable youth, really benefit from ongoing support and recogni... Read More
After School Attractions
I woke up early this morning in Washington DC where I am attending a conference on School Counseling programs. We are working on a new program to incorporate school counseling into our after school programs in order to provide students the emotional support they need to succeed. Despite my desire to linger in bed, I know I must get up in order to have time to stand in line for 45 minutes at Market Lunch at the Eastern Market to enjoy Blue Bucks (blueberry pancakes), eggs and biscuits….yum!... Read More