June Newsletter at a Glance

Program Highlight: Take the End-of-Year Program Survey!

Get Involved: President's Budget Proposal Eliminates 21CCLC Funding

Funding Opportunities: North Dakota Foundations

Professional Development: OST Training That "Sticks" And More!

We Need Your Input!

Help us better serve you, and take the ND Afterschool Network: End-of-Year Program survey!

Survey

Get Involved

Federal Policy Updates

President's Budget Proposal Eliminates Dedicated Funding For Afterschool

The President's proposed budget for fiscal year 2026 (FY2026) details the elimination of funding for 21st Century Community Learning Centers (21CCLC), the only federal funding dedicated to afterschool and summer programming. The full budget proposal, released the evening of May 30, 2025, details the Administration’s proposal to consolidate 21st CCLC with 17 other K-12 grant programs within the Department of Education and cut funding for those programs by 69%. It is now the job of Congress to craft spending legislation. Learn more here.

graphic that indicates the FY 2026 budget proposal details elimination of dedicated funding for afterschool. Currently 21st CCLC funding supports programs in every state and territory; under the Administration's proposal the dedicated funding for afterschool and summer programs would cease to exist (Afterschool Alliance). Shows impacts on North Dakota where currently, 107 communities and 6,831 children are served. In the FY2026 proposed budget, 0 communities and 0 children would be served. The current budget allocation is $6,515,398, but under President Trump's FY2026 Budget, that investment is 0.

This summer is a GREAT time to invite federal lawmakers to visit your 21CCLC program site, as they will generally be home around July 4th and in August. ND Afterschool Network can help to support visit through brainstorming ideas, communications & marketing support, or outreach. If you do hold a visit, please share pictures with us so we can help amplify your message!

See Messaging Tools & Resources Here

North Dakota Policy Updates

ND Legislative session adjourned on May 3, 2025. There were 67 bills and resolutions prioritized by the Legislative Management for study during the 2025-26 interim (20 required studies and 47 optional studies). A total of 47 studies were approved by Legislative Management in May 2025, including:

Child Care Provider Licensing Laws & Policies
Legislative Council Program Evaluation of Department of Health and Human Services Child Care Services
Special Education Teacher Shortages
Mathematics and Reading Proficiency Among Disabled Students

See Full List of Interim Studies

Funding & Opportunities

Looking for funding opportunities? Check out this list of North Dakota Foundations from the Center for Rural Health!

2025 Lights On Afterschool Poster Contest officially open!

This year, the Afterschool Alliance is looking for any artwork that represents the spirit of afterschool programs. Think about how your program has opened doors to new opportunities, whether it’s discovering something you love, learning new skills, or making friends. Show them how your afterschool staff have inspirited, mentored, or supported you. Let them know what afterschool means to you through your art. The winning artwork will be printed on more than 50,000 posters displayed at over 8,000 Lights On Afterschool events worldwide. It’s a great opportunity for a program to gain national recognition. The winning artist will be feature on their website, blog, and in a national press release – and their program will be credited on the poster and receive a $500 grand prize.

Young Entrepreneur Pitch Challenge is a contest for students in grades K-12. It is a simple set of activities that helps kids learn creativity, problem solving, critical thinking, and presentation skills. Register your program by June 15th

flyer for young entrepreneur pitch challenge - register your program by June 15! pitch submissions due by July 31. compete by grade level enter as an individual or a team, celebrate with a pizza or donut party (to qualify for a YEI-funded part, submit 5 or more entries), win up to $250 in gift cards. Connect your passion with a solution to a problem! Use creativity, problem solving, critical thinking, and presentation skills to explain your idea. Create a video and submit it to the pitch challenge. #yepitchchallenge

Professional Development

Mental Health First Aid

Various Options from June - July | Virtual

Mental Health First Aid from National Council on Wellbeing teaches you how to identify, understand, and respond to signs of mental health and substance use challenges among adults. You'll build skills and confidence you need to reach out and provide initial support to those who are struggling. You'll also learn how to help connect them to appropriate support. Offered free if you live or work in North Dakota.

Learn More & Register

graphic for a webinar - supporting early childhood STEAM experiences through play, June 9, 2025 11 AM PT, register now: ngcproject.org

Get ready to play! Join the National Girls Collaborative Project for this fun and interactive webinar on June 9 at 11:00 AM PST / 2:00 PM EST to learn how to leverage an interdisciplinary STEAM approach to foster young children's curiosity through authentic play-based learning. Register here: https://bit.ly/4izblml

Free webinar Register here July 30, 2025 11:00 - 12:00pm CT Strategies for Out of School Time Supervisors Are you an afterschool supervisor who struggles to train staff in the complicated area of behavior management strategies? The Training that “Sticks” model aims to provide an approach to behavior management that promotes ongoing staff growth and development. This evidence-informed model was designed specifically for supervisors who face the unique challenges of the afterschool workforce: limited time for training, a high number of part-time staff, significant levels of staff turnover, and working with staff who haven’t had formal youth development training. Join this workshop to learn how to incorporate specific behavior management strategies into your programs and walk away with a training structure and curriculum to implement with your staff team. Attend live and recieve a FREE Training Kit!

ND Afterschool Network has scholarship funding for any staff in OST program across ND to attend at no cost. Contact Kristin.knorr@k12.nd.us to access.

ND Afterschool Network has scholarship funding for any staff in OST program across ND to attend CHAMPS or Tough Kids at no cost. Contact Kristin.knorr@k12.nd.us to access.

Our Mission

We equip North Dakota afterschool programs with the tools and support to expand program quality, build leadership capacity, and ensure access to afterschool programs for all youth in their community.

www.ndafterschoolnetwork.com