Arizona Center for Afterschool Excellence
Making It Count for Arizona Kids After the School Bell Rings
2013 - 2014 Annual Report
A Letter from Our Director The 21st Century is an exciting but challenging time for Arizona’s children and youth. Giving our children and youth a strong social and emotional foundation is as critical to their success as their academic achievements. Quality out-of-school time programs are the bridge that is needed between the formal learning that occurs in the classroom and the informal learning that occurs in quality afterschool programs. The Arizona Center for Afterschool Excellence is proud to advocate for and contribute to the expanded accessibility and quality of programs that are proven to bring relevancy to what is learned in the classroom and resiliency to our youth as they struggle to discover their passion and purpose in life. Melanie McClintock, Executive Director
Arizona Center for Afterschool Excellence www.azafterschool.org info@azafterschool.org 480.730.7126 3205 S. Rural Rd. Tempe, AZ 85282 Find us on Social Media twitter.com/AZ_Afterschool facebook.com/AfterschoolAZ
We are proud to partner with the hundreds of school, community and faith based organizations that are collaboratively working to provide our children and youth safe, nurturing, experiential learning environments.
About AzCASE The Arizona Center for Afterschool Excellence (AzCASE) is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization dedicated to improving access to high-quality, affordable out-of-school learning opportunities for all Arizona youth by serving as the preeminent source for professional development, advocacy and community capacity building in the out-of-school time (OST) community. AzCASE is one of 47 statewide afterschool networks comprising the national network of Statewide Afterschool Networks supported by the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation (www.mott.org). These networks work to create a statewide system for expanding access to and the quality of out-of-school time programs. Because young people spend 80% of their waking hours outside of the classroom, AzCASE is dedicated to improving public awareness and support for learning and personal development in those out-of-school hours. AzCASE serves as a hub for advocacy, public awareness, collaboration, and partnerships to advance out-of-school time on behalf of Arizona’s youth and families.
2013-2014 At A Glance l Quality Standards Release of the Quality Standards for OST Programs This was a momentous year for the Arizona Center for Afterschool Excellence for many reasons, but topping that list was the release of the first-ever set of quality standards for Arizona’s out-of-school time programs. Developed in partnership with Valley of the Sun United Way, and with input from statewide stakeholders representing OST providers, educators and policymakers, School’s Out, Make It Count: Arizona Quality Standards for Out-of-School Time Programs is a compilation of out-of-school time standards aimed at providing an answer to the pressing question: What is Quality in Out-of-School Time? The standards address this question in the context of best practices organized into the following key areas:
Safe & Healthy Environments
Family, School & Community Engagement
Positive Relationships
Program Management
Intentional Programming & Activities
Program Evaluation & Data
Equity & Inclusion
Getting the Word Out
AzCASE has worked with OST professionals to develop curriculum for 5 of 7 standards to date.
>> 12,000 copies of the Standards distributed >> 33 Standards presentations across the state, including to: Arizona Education Coalition Arizona Department of Education Arizona Grantmakers Forum Arizona PTA Conference
The Make It Count Pledge
Upon the release of the OST standards, AzCASE asked Arizona out-of-school time programs to sign the Make It Count pledge, demonstrating their commitment to using the OST Standards to LIFT – Learn, Implement, Fine-Tune and Teach – their programs to new heights of quality.
450+
programs signed the Make it Count Pledge between May 1 and September 30
Arizona School Boards Association Conference City of Avondale Out-of-School Time Summit Intertribal Circle of Sharing Conference Statewide Afterschool Networks Conference “We have started using the standards in our team meetings. I had all the line staff look at the standards as a whole and then I preselected one to focus on. We read through each of the indicators and talked about what that means and what it would look like after school. Each staff member then wrote a personal goal that addressed that standard. The next meeting we will talk about progress towards that goal and then focus on another standard.”
Kelly Guerra Coordinator of Community Education J.O. Combs Unified School District
2013-2014 At A Glance l Outreach Professional Development Trainings
19 Trainings 631 Staff 123 Programs 1,893 Hours l
l
l
AzCASE trainings are the only source of external professional development for many Arizona outof-school time program staff. This year, we conducted 19 professional development trainings with 631 out-of-school time professionals on the following topics: and Inclusion for All Youth >> Safety Presented by ‘bob’ Maureen and Jude McNeil
>>
Maximizing Communication with Children with Special Needs Presented by Amy Maschue
Strategies After School >> Literacy Presented by Kathy Wilby and Collaborative Building >> Community Presented by Dr. Gale Gorke Master Your Emotions
>> Presented by Larry Kerby Trainings were conducted in Phoenix, Peoria, Tucson & Flagstaff to be maximally accessible to programs statewide.
Key Achievements in OST Advocacy AzCASE advocated on behalf of the City of Phoenix PAC programs and was successful in protecting these afterschool programs from city budget cuts.
AzCASE staff and board members made 9 Capitol Hill visits in Washington DC in May 2014. AzCASE was successful in recruiting Representatives Ann Kirkpatrick and Raúl Grijalva as co-sponsors for the Afterschool for America’s Children Act. AzCASE conducted a survey of 2014 Congressional Candidates on critical pieces of federal legislation that impact out-of-school time programs. AzCASE succeeded in having 30 state legislative candidates sign the Arizona OST Pledge.
Arizona Afterschool Program Directory
AzCASE created and maintains the AZ Afterschool Program Directory, a free statewide online directory of programs. The Directory is bi-lingual, and serves as a powerful tool for parents to find programs for their children and for policymakers to access important data about afterschool programs. The Directory currently includes data on 860 school year programs and 545 summer programs.
545
Summer Programs
860 School Year Programs
2013-2014 At A Glance l Events Out-of-School Time Conference & Awards of Excellence Luncheon
The AzCASE Annual Out-of-School Time Conference is the only statewide conference solely focused on professionally preparing OST staff to fully engage and prepare Arizona’s youth for life and learning. The 2013 OST Conference was held at the Phoenix Convention Center on Saturday, November 2, and featured 35 unique workshops, a Keynote Address from Diego Arancibia of ASAPConnect, and exhibits from 33 local organizations and vendors.
Event Participation
What Participants Had to Say “Great conference this year. Presenters were great, and although my colleagues and I all took different classes, we all felt the same way. This year, you knocked it out of the park!”
Geographic Representation
79 programs from 10 counties: Apache, Cochise, Coconino, Gila, Maricopa, Mohave, Navajo, Pima, Pinal, and Yavapai. 1 program from New Mexico.
800 601
Conference Participants from
Awards Luncheon Participants
80
programs
- Terri G. “I’m very impressed to see that AzCASE is comprised of such a small staff yet pulled off such a large conference. If that doesn’t embody the spirit of afterschool endurance, I don’t know what does!”
- Matthew F.
Honoring This Year’s Out-of-School Time Leaders
Coupled with the Conference is the Out-of-School Time Awards of Excellence Luncheon, highlighting innovative out-of-school time programs and staff members for their exemplary work in furthering the delivery of quality youth development programs for Arizona’s children. At the 2013 Luncheon, AzCASE honored the following OST program and professionals: The Jane Romatzke Leadership Award Debbie Winlock, Director, Page Public Library
The Jane Romatzke Leadership Award is presented to Debbie Winlock by AzCASE Board President, Dr. Pat Gillespie.
Outstanding Out-of-School Time Professional Kim Allvin, Program Manager, Boys Hope Girls Hope Outstanding Out-of-School Time Program ICAN
The 2013 Out-of-School Time Champion Award was presented to Vince Roig, Founding Chairman of Helios Education Foundation, for his dedication to quality learning opportunities for Arizona youth at every level of the educational spectrum.
Financials Income $354,000
Expenses $354,000
*
*The AzCASE statewide afterschool network model is designed for AzCASE to be a resource and advocacy center that works with and through partners statewide to expand the availability and quality of out-of-school time programs. As a result, a larger percentage of our annual budget is spent on salaries and benefits than a traditional direct services provider.
STEM Grants
In partnership with Cox Communications, AzCASE distributed 12 grants to out-of-school time programs for Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) projects. The intent of the AzCASE STEM Grants is to foster the expansion and implementation of best practices in STEM informal learning.
12
Grants
$15,135
Awarded
What’s on the Horizon Arizona Quality Standards Assessment Tool
The Arizona Quality Standards Assessment Tool (AzQSAT) will be a comprehensive selfassessment tool designed by and specifically for out-of-school time programs in Arizona. The AzQSAT is the 2nd step of the AzCASE Continuous Quality Improvement System, building on the Standards by helping programs to further identify and refine their strengths and areas to improve upon.
Statewide Professional Development System
The third and final step in the continuous quality improvement process involves the development of a comprehensive professional development system for OST program staff. This system will enhance AzCASE’s current professional development offerings by linking trainings directly to the Standards, and increasing the frequency and availability of trainings statewide.
STEM Initiative
AzCASE is in the midst of a comprehensive STEM Initiative that includes an OST STEM Survey; STEM grants to foster the expansion and implementation of best practices in STEM informal learning; the creation of an AzCASE STEM website, a centralized hub for OST professionals to find STEM resources, curricula and professional development opportunities; and the mapping of STEM Programs throughout Arizona. AzCASE has recruited an AmeriCorps Public Ally to our staff to focus entirely on expanding this STEM Initiative.
Acknowledgements Board of Directors
Patricia Gillespie, EdD, Board President Union Elementary School District (Retired) Tacy Ashby, EdD, Immediate Past Board President Grand Canyon University Carey Chambers, Board Treasurer KPMG Lauren Stratton, Board Secretary Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Scottsdale Kirk Astroth, PhD Arizona 4-H Irene Burnton Arizona Department of Health Services Barbara Ervin Deer Valley Unified School District Josh Glider Kyrene School District JoAnne Hilde Education Coalition of Arizona
Staff
Melanie McClintock Executive Director Franny Sharpe Program & Outreach Manager Angelica Herrera Program Assistant Tyandrah Ashley STEM Program Assistant, Public Ally
Joseph A. Losada Losada & Associates Accounting and Tax, LLC Maggie Mangini, EdD University of Arizona Lawrence Robinson Arizona Summit Law School Chad Sampson Arizona Board of Regents Ruth Solomon Pima County JTED Cindy Trejo Arizona Department of Education Tim Valencia City of Phoenix Carolyn Warner Corporate/Education Consulting, Inc. Andrea Whitsett ASU Morrison Institute for Public Policy Corey Woods, Councilmember City of Tempe Successful and innovative youth programs are not just a luxury for Arizona’s cities and towns, they are a necessity. Doug Von Gausig Mayor, City of Clarkdale
Arizona Center for Afterschool Excellence www.azafterschool.org 3205 S. Rural Rd. Tempe, AZ 85282
info@azafterschool.org 480.730.7126
Find Us on Social Media twitter.com/AZ_Afterschool
facebook.com/AfterschoolAZ