Thanks to All who joined us in Salem for our Annual Afterschool Conference on November 4th!
What an amazing day! Thanks to our Keynote, Andrea Hoban, for starting the conference day with a thought-provoking, interactive session looking at our own mindset and how it impacts our daily adventures. This year, we wanted to emphasize helping guide and equip youth with the necessary equipment for them to find their own success, whatever that may be. Andrea emphasized the 
importance of knowing your own perspective, how it differs from those you are interacting with, and what our role is in creating the environment that we need to help youth be successful. 

After the keynote, attendees continued conversations with one of our 10 Campfire topics, such as Supporting Gender Identity Development and Intercultural Relevancy. 

The afternoon had two 2-hour workshop sessions with options in social emotional learning (SEL), STEM, quality learning environments, policy, and more. Several dozen sat in on Susan Zundels session on Developmental Relationships, looking at the Search Institutes research on engaging youth. Aiko Sato, our partner from Champions in the the Portland-Metro area led a highly praised, Teaching vs Facilitating session. 

Additional resources and information will be loaded onto our OAC2017 webpage as they are made available. Thank you to so many for joining us in the adventure and making a memorable experience as we learn from one another. 

Join us November 3rd, 2018 for Oregon Afterschool Conference: Express Yourself! Whether its arts, SEL, gender or equity - we want to support every youth in their own expression of self. 
Afterschool Works:
Oregon Policy Update

Oregon State Legislature is getting geared up for the 2018 short session with Legislative Committee Days this November 13th-15th. Senators and Representatives will be in Salem next week to review 2017 decisions and implementation, as well as hearing from colleagues and advocates about next years pressing issues. We will keep you posted as the 2018 legislative session draws nearer. 

Please mark your calendars to join us next March 6th for our Afterschool & Summer Learning Day at the Capitol where we will be celebrating the work of afterschool programs around Oregon. 

National Policy Update

As many of you may know, Federal 21st Century Community Learning Center (CCLC) funding, the only dedicated funds to support afterschool programs, is still on the chopping block for the 2018 budget. Congress seems to understand the importance of keeping the funding as part of the federal budget, but we will not know if it will indeed remain in the budget and at what funding level until the budget gets passed, perhaps in December or as late as some time next year. Please mark your calendars to participate (virtually is completely acceptable) in the April 2018 Afterschool Challenge and we'll we work to keep you updated on opportunities to help spread the word that afterschool works. 

STEM Spotlight: Opportunity to Join National STEM Professional Learning Community

If you have a demonstrated commitment to re-thinking public engagement activities and their role in creating equitable STEM opportunities and outcomes, you should consider applying for a new learning community being put together by The One Sky Institute. They are looking for mid-career professionals (4-12 years in the field) to engage with and explore new approaches to implementing and evaluating equitable STEM programming. Participants will be  mentored by an experienced faculty of practitioners and researchers, participants will learn to broaden participation in STEM in their fields and come together as a community of professionals dedicated to increasing equity in the STEM ecosystem. Find more information and APPLY HERE.
What Does Healthy Eating and Physical Activity mean to you?   

OregonASK will be working the next several years to increase awareness and use of the Healthy Eating and Physical Activity (HEPA) standards for out-of-school time programs. The HEPA standards address everything from content, staff training, nutrition curriculum, social supports and physical environment, within both nutrition and physical activity. We would love to see more programs understand and use the standards as a way of improving quality programming, increasing healthy habits for youth and building more supports between school day wellness policy and out-of-school opportunities. If you are interested in learning more or joining our Health & Wellness Committee, contact Katie Lakey.
How are we Making the Most of Summer?

A recent report released by the RAND Corporation,  Making Summer Last :  Integrating Summer Programming into Core District Priorities and Operations , looks at how summer learning opportunities can be a part of a districts larger, long term priorities to improve student success. The study sites several recommendations based on the challenges and improvements seen by the participating districts. The overall recommendations included: 
  • Build understanding and connect summer program goals to district goals.
  • Establish cross-departmental planning.
  • Capitalize on existing experts and systems to complete summer tasks. 
The entire report is available for free download online .
Upcoming Professional Development Opportunities  

Program Management Series
Starting December 14th in Wilsonville
This STEM program for middle school youth in out-of-school time uses games, projects, and hands-on activities within the context of citizen science to explore nature, connect with scientists, and design strategies to protect our planet. Cloud Quest also includes, climate, weather and how youth can participate as citizen scientists to track them all!

National Afterschool Association Convention
Lead the Charge
March 18th-20th in Atlanta, GA
 
This years NAA Convention will be a partnership with the National 21st Century Community Learning Center conference, bringing together state 21st CCLC teams with NAA participants for this 3 day opportunity to Be Bold. Be Brave. Be Brilliant. CLICK HERE  to find more information about this unique opportunity to increase collaboration with local, state and federal partners. 
OregonASK keeping our Lights On until 2020!

After a year long process of planning, OregonASK submitted our proposal to the CS Mott Foundation last spring to continue our role as the statewide afterschool network. We were excited to hear that our proposal was approved this fall, OregonASK will continue supporting afterschool & summer programs across Oregon for the next 3 years. For more information about our three year work plan or getting connected, please reach out to Policy & Outreach Coordinator, Bethany Thramer.
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