After-School Care is Part of Education
Jane Ames
Council Session: Tuesday, Sept. 27 Resolution #36338 (click here to read the resolution) to establish goals and standards for city-funded, after-school programs.
I want to thank ‘Stand for Children’ and commend them for their advocacy for children, families and strong communities.
• You are developing into a powerful and responsible grassroots organization throughout Oregon.
• In Portland, we appreciate how you have grown, building your strength and establishing good working relationships with the many citizen advocates already working here.
• Thank you, Collen Davis for your organizing and advocacy, and to Portland Area Director Shannon Campion, and to Executive Director Jonah Edelman.
I support these recommendations for improving After-School Care.
• The recommendations you have developed (click here to read Stand for Children's recommendations) recognize the importance in identifying and planning for developmental AND academic outcomes.
• We all must be mindful of the children and youths behind the benchmark scores we refer to so often.
Your work identifies the importance of providing:
• a positive environment for students after school;
• tutoring for both homework, and in content areas of literacy and mathematics;
• insisting on a balance of after school class offerings, that includes academics;
• You have included training and development of staff, which is crucial for any high quality program;
• You just barely mention, but I notice and appreciate, that you include the
“appropriately paid” staff.
We know this is important work; any kind of child care is, and this involves many more demands. We tend to often state that education is our number 1 priority, and then pay the providers low wages. Thank you for drawing attention to that.
You have brought us a set of expectations that clarify what is necessary for effective after-school programs.
• The outcomes are clear and measurable;
• The requirements for demonstrating success are established;
• It is important to make sure the programs we fund are effective, and can demonstrate it;
• You have made it a requirement that if programs aren’t effective, we follow up with responsible action.
You have done the research and ground work to help us with that responsibility.
Thank you for being effective advocates and partners.
This is an excellent example of the partnerships that help our city improve and thrive; and that help we elected leaders do our jobs more effectively.
Posted by Jane Ames on September 28, 2005
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