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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10 Things You Didn’t Know About Becky Shultz

As we approach the holiday season, we are reminded of how much we value and appreciate our TEAMBOOST partners. So to say THANK YOU to our incredible community we will be spotlighting our BOOST Bloggers, Ambassadors, and Leadership Team members weekly through the end of December. We are kicking off our BOOST Gratitude Blog Series with 10 things you didn’t know about Becky Shultz, BOOST Leadership Team Member since 2010. I chose to work in After School to be able to help more students stay s...Read More

10 Things You Didn’t Know About Melissa Perez

As we approach the holiday season, we are reminded of how much we value and appreciate our TEAMBOOST partners. So to say THANK YOU to our incredible community we will be spotlighting our BOOST Bloggers, Ambassadors, and Leadership Team members weekly through the end of December. We are kicking off our BOOST Gratitude Blog Series with 10 things you didn’t know about Melissa Perez, BOOST Leadership Team Member since 2017. How did you get into the OST, expanded learning, or educational field?...Read More

Summer Meals: Policy Update and Best Practices for Summer 2021

The Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) is a critical resource for filling the nutrition gap that exists for many low-income children who rely on free or reduced-price meals during the school year. The need to expand the reach of the Summer Nutrition Programs is more important than ever as communities continue to respond to COVID-19’s impacts on food security, education, and the economy. To support continued meal access during COVID-19, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has extended key n...Read More

Let’s amplify the voice of the expanded learning workforce

When the majority of schools in 2020-21 were closed for in-person learning, who has answered the call? The expanded learning workforce. Some staff at afterschool, summer, and out-of-school-time programs provided supervision and support to children of essential workers and other vulnerable children. Others stepped up to meet families’ basic needs, including meals, technology for distance learning, and referrals to language translation and free COVID-19 testing. Some found missing students and foc...Read More

2020 – A year of opportunity. Now what?

An unprecedented year. How many times have we heard that phrase? A reflective sentiment for a global pandemic but also cause to acknowledge our diversity, ensure equity and to seek inclusivity individually and collectively. An unprecedented year, no doubt about it. TGR Foundation learned a lot about itself in 2020, as I am sure your organization did as well. This learning didn’t come about in a deliberate manner, rather as a result of realizing that the status quo is not an option. Youth are str...Read More

The Cutting Edge of Youth Learning and Development: Six Things You Should Know and Three Things You Should Do

Four years ago, I wrote a blog post for the BOOST Café titled, Positive Youth Development, an Idea Whose Time Has Come…. Again and Again. The blog highlighted that new research on Grit, Growth Mindset and Social Emotional Learning supported what we in the out-of-school time field have known for a long time. Four years later, the most recent research, once again, supports the importance of a foundation of program quality grounded in Positive Youth Development. A groundbreaking new report recently...Read More

Traveling, Speaking And Collaborating For Future Education Equity: A Report From The Road

This blog is being republished with permission from TGR Foundation. It was originally posted on November 1st, 2018.   —————————————————————————————————————————————————– October presented me with multi...Read More

How Expanded Learning Can Expand Its Presence

Editor’s Note: This blog was originally posted on January 6, 2018 by BOOST Blogger @rodrigoarancibia on arancibia.org. With permission from the author, we are reposting.  — Part of my last post was speaking up for those who can’t in Trump’s America. So what are some ways Expanded Learning can speak up? Here are some ways Expanded Learning can speak for those who cannot speak or listen to what’s really going on. Keep in mind, there are lots of ways to expand your pre...Read More

Preserving Programs for Kids by Going Local

At the end of 2017, the nation is on the verge of one of the largest federal tax cuts in modern times. And while some in Washington celebrate, for others the Congressional tax deal holds the specter of devastating cuts to social services and education programs that rely on federal dollars. Some are bracing for budgets squeezed dry, and more and more programs, already run on a shoestring, hobbled to ineffectiveness or nonexistence. Knowing what’s at stake, people in our line of work don’t typical...Read More

Hear the Whole Song

I’ve mentioned before my love of the band Mumford & Sons, and I have been delighted recently that my five-year old son has been similarly taken by them. The other day we were listening to “Roll Away Your Stone” and I was telling him how that was the first song of theirs I had ever heard, and recounted the first time I heard it.  He made me tell him the story twice, somehow as rapt by it as he was by the song. I told him that I was in the car driving when it came on. I told ...Read More

9 Tips from Out-of-School Experts to Build #PartnershipsWithPurpose

Call it what you want – partnerships, collaborations, collective impact – whatever your terminology of choice, partnerships with purpose are essential for any out-of-school program to be successful. Resources are tight, time is limited and staff turnover is a reality. So how do you build impactful partnerships? Here are 9 tips from key out-of-school time leaders. Use the hashtag #PartnershipsWithPurpose to share yours. “Establish a mutual purpose of providing the best for kids....Read More

10 Tips for Making Feedback Part of Your DNA

I was in a meeting recently and was offered a suggestion: To invite my staff to play back what they heard during discussions in order to reduce the chance for misunderstandings. I appreciated this feedback because it was practical and addressed an area of growth for me. It was especially meaningful since the feedback was from someone whom I supervise. I know that it’s not always easy to offer up constructive feedback to a supervisor. Feedback within an organization: Practice makes better I...Read More