If you work with middle school and high school youth this session is for you! For many years the primary focus for many in the learning field (both in school and in expanded learning) has been early childhood development and “reading on grade level” by the end of elementary school. These topics are important, but they leave out the needs of youth 12-18 years of age. Recent studies and promising practices tell us a lot about how critical adolescent years are to our life trajectories. “Although adolescence is often thought of as a time of turmoil and risk for young people, it is more accurately viewed as a developmental period rich with opportunity for youth to learn and grow,” declared a 2019 report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. Additionally, early findings from a UC-Irvine study indicate the gains from high-quality early childhood experiences may be multiplied by high-quality afterschool experiences in middle and high school. This session will explore these new and exciting scientific findings and how opportunities and partnerships in afterschool and summer can be better designed and delivered to maximize this “newfound potential.”