Spring 2022

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In This Issue

• Afterschool Focus: Making Meaning Out of Data
• Program Profile: Assessing Needs Pays Off for Cook County District 104 21st CCLC Program
• News From the Field: Brighton Park Neighborhood Council’s 21st CCLC Successful High School Programming Keeps Students in School

Afterschool Focus

Making Meaning Out of Data

High-quality afterschool programs don’t happen by accident. Regular data analysis can help 21st CCLC programs determine whether their programs are on track to meet their goals and can make any changes needed to reach these goals.

• Learn more about how to gather and use data to ensure high-quality programming

Program Profile

Assessing Needs Pays Off for the Cook County District 104 21st CCLC Program

The Cook County School District (SD) 104 21st CCLC afterschool program in Summit, Illinois, has been providing culturally responsive arts integration programming for just over a year. From day one, the 21st CCLC team has used comprehensive data analysis to plan and implement an arts integration afterschool program.

• Learn more about the Cook County District 104 21st CCLC program.

News from the Field

Brighton Park Neighborhood Council’s 21st CCLC Successful High School Programming Keeps Students in School

The Brighton Park Neighborhood Council helps keep teens in school by using a combination of strategies that includes engaging students the summer before they begin high school, near-peer mentoring, and family-centered support services.

• Learn more about the Brighton Park Neighborhood Council’s 21st CCLC program.

Recommended Resources

Fiscal Management

You for Youth offers a Fiscal Management course to help 21st CCLC afterschool programs take charge of their budgets. The course provides an overview of 21st CCLC requirements, budget and cost principles, and more. This quick course will demonstrate how to develop, monitor, and control program budgets. You will also get tips for coaching staff on fiscal management. Learn more about this training.

National Institute on Out-of-School Time’s Quick Tips for Youth Engagement

The National Institute on Out-of-School Time offers 3 Steps to Bolster Youth Engagement in Constantly Changing Times. You may have these strategies in your toolbox; if so, this is a great reminder with tips for implementation. If you haven’t been using these strategies, you will want to adopt them, especially as you plan for summer programming. Learn more.

Information for Grantees

Important Dates and Events

• April 21 — Spring 2022 Resource Bulletin Release
• May 3–4 — 2022 Virtual Spring Conference
• May 26 — Summer 2022 Newsletter Release
• May 30–July 18 — ISBE 21st CCLC Data Warehouse and Benchmarking tool open for Spring 2022 Reporting

Grants and Other Opportunities

The rideshare company Lyft is offering community grants with the opportunity to complete applications anytime. Visit https://www.lyft.com/lyftup/community-grants/instructions for details.

Join Us Online

Do you have a question for your afterschool colleagues? Would you like to know what’s going on in other Illinois 21st CCLC programs? Join the Illinois Quality Afterschool Facebook Group.

Would you like to receive the Illinois Quality Afterschool newsletter and resource brief? Fill out our online subscription form.

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Copyright ©2022 by American Institute for Research. This publication was developed by AIR in 2022 and was funded by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) with support by the U.S. Department of Education. The content does not necessarily reflect the views of the AIR or any other source. This publication is in the public domain. Authorization to reproduce and disseminate it in whole or in part is granted as long as appropriate acknowledgment is given.