Iowa Afterschool Alliance News |
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Closing Soon: Submit Your Interest Now for AmeriCorps Members at your Afterschool Program this summer
Through the Iowa Afterschool's Summer Ladders AmeriCorps Program, you can add a new leader to your summer afterschool program team focused on capacity building for your organization! This member will assist you and your summer site by developing lesson plans and implementing activities with youth.
What we’re looking for in host sites:
- Support with recruiting and interviewing potential AmeriCorps members for placement in your program.
- Ability to supervise the AmeriCorps Member, including coaching and mentoring to meet program goals; approving time sheets; discipline; and role modeling good collaboration, communication, and leadership.
- Provide a strong staff orientation to the program, as well as ongoing professional development throughout the service period.
- Commitment to evaluation: The Iowa Afterschool Alliance will administer brief pre-and post-program evaluations to assess each site's capacity and access to high-quality lesson plans.
- Commitment to ensuring a good Member experience.
How much will this cost?
The cost-share to host a Member (the amount you will be responsible for as a host site) is $2,183 for the entire summer (300 hours of service), which breaks down to $7.27 per hour.
From the end of May through to August, AmeriCorps members will each receive a stipend of $4,086, the equivalent of $13.62 per hour to cover living expenses. That’s a $1,086 increase from the last year, thanks to the additional support we secured through combined federal COVID relief and Volunteer Iowa grants and funding.
Where do I sign up?
Please complete the short survey or contact us with your interest as soon as possible! The Iowa Afterschool Alliance will consider all interested programs and make our decision for host sites by mid-February 2022. In February, there will be an informational webinar for these selected host sites to learn more about the program and have their questions answered.
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Relationships and Equitable Environments: Meeting Young People Where They Are
How well is your organization doing at creating an equitable relational climate where all young people have access to the resources and relationships they need to thrive? Creating more equitable climates in our classrooms and programs takes knowledge, investment, and resources. Search Institute’s State of Relationships case study examined the quality of relationships in schools and out-of-school time (OST) programs.
There were three things programs creating an equitable climate were doing:
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Intentionally creating an environment where young people feel their individual needs are seen and responded to;
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Reflecting critically about how to improve organizational policies, programs, and practices to ensure that all young people experience positive relationships with staff;
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Tailoring their approach to building relationships with each young person based on their unique needs and/or circumstances.
The study is based on surveys of 668 school and OST staff and leaders who work with middle and high school-aged students in Minnesota. The motivation for this study was to better understand the actions staff and leaders take (or, do not) to build a relationship-rich culture within their organizations for all young people. Questions of equity were at the center of this work. View the study report here.
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Show Students What Careers Look Like Day-to-Day...
... with hundreds of videos showcasing careers in a variety of industries! When considering careers, students often find it difficult to envision what it would mean on a day-to-day basis. CareerOneStop’s short videos overview the atmosphere, helpful characteristics, and educational pathways.
View and share with students here (available in English and Spanish).
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New Children's Storybook from NASA
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NASA KIds' Club
While on your space adventures, there are more resources to explore NASA and its missions! NASA Kids’ Club features games for students that entertain as well as educate, supporting national education standards in STEM for students in kindergarten through fourth grade. Learn more about the NASA Kids’ Club here, and students can start playing and learning here.
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Professional Development Opportunities |
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2022 Beyond School Hours Conference
Foundations, Inc. is hosting its annual Beyond School Hours conference this upcoming February in Orlando, Florida.
Foundations, Inc.’s mission is to improve the quality of education for our nation’s children by strengthening the skills of educators. We know the Beyond School Hours conference is a great way for all professionals, no matter the role or workload, to come and invest in their professional learning through hands-on, engaging workshops, networking events, and strategies that will benefit and develop their skill sets! Did we mention free swag, cocktail hours, and special Disney discounts?
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2022 BOOST Conference
BOOST Collaborative will host their annual BOOST Conference on April 26-29, 2022, in Palm Springs, CA.
Join the largest, most recognized, and comprehensive global convening for after school, expanded learning, and in and out-of-school time professionals. Set in a retreat-like atmosphere, this annual, extraordinary event will rejuvenate your passion, boost your direction for quality programming, and provide tools and resources that will inspire you to create change.
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Out of School Time Professional Development Center
The Out of School Time Professional Development Center provides Out of School Time training to OST professionals. The classes provide in-depth curriculum and certificates. If you or your staff are interested in signing up for courses visit the Out-of-School Time website. Check out the entire course catalog here.
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Great Content on Y4Y!
You 4 Youth is a free online professional development site that is designed to support 21CCLC program staff but is a valuable tool for any afterschool professional looking to build their skills! Recently, Y4Y has rolled out a whole module on literacy. Click here to register.
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Afterschool Alliance Webinars
The Afterschool Alliance offers webinars on a wide range of topics, from policy and the new Every Student Succeeds Act, to STEM and Social-Emotional Learning. Find out more on their webinars website.
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Iowa Child Care Training Registry
Find professional development for school-age programming on the State of Iowa Child Care Training Registry on topics ranging from health and safety to developmentally appropriate programming. Find out more online.
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National AfterSchool Association PD Resources
NAA provides afterschool professionals with resources to stay up-to-date on the latest topics in afterschool and summer learning. Find out more on their website here.
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Resources for STEM Programming
The Center for the Advancement of Informal Science Education (CAISE) provides background information that is useful for the development of STEM programming. Find out more on their website.
The Afterschool Tech Toolkit aims to empower afterschool professionals and educators with strategies and training so they can provide students with access to technology outside of classroom hours. It includes training modules on getting started, training staff, accessing technology, and devices, and more. Take a look at the toolkit here.
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THE IOWA AFTERSCHOOL ALLIANCE IS HERE FOR YOU
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