Program Quality Research and Resources

Coach for America is a concept project interested in supplying after school programs in California with highly qualified part- and full-time coaches. The hope is to extend the project nationwide. To that end, the team is interested in surveying programs across three states to gain a better understanding of the need and interest in the project. This information will then be used to solicit donors and formalize the Coach for America concept as a non-profit program. If you are interested in finding out more about the project or completing the survey, click here.

The Center for Collaborative Solutions (CCS) introduces a new publication guide for afterschool programs. The Developing Exemplary Practices in Nutrition, Physical Activity and Food Security in Afterschool Programs is designed to assist afterschool program leaders and their partners in combating the youth obesity epidemic. The guide includes exemplary practices and indicator rubrics designed for afterschool programs to assess their progress in addressing youth obesity. The CCS also provides free Growing Healthy Children Regional Trainings.

Great Opportunity For Front-Line Child Nutrition Employees

Have fun learning culinary skills, food preparation techniques, nutrition and safe food handling!

Healthy Cuisine for Kids Course will be offered at Northwood High School in Irvine October 4, 11, and 18, 2008 (Saturdays)

Earn ½ unit college credit or Continuing Education Units for SNA certification or credentialing

Instructors will be Wanda Grant, Yvonne Ortega and Chef Roberto Najera.

See attached application for details.

The Freechild Project recently released the Guide to Social Change Led By and With Young People. This guide provides an overview of youth led social change, a step-by-step cyclical model for mobilizing youth, overview of many of the issues facing youth, and potential actions youth can take.

The Road of Life cancer prevention for kids program has free after school and summer health education curriculum geared toward third through fifth grade learners. To access this curriculum, click here.

The Secondary School Redesign Project website at the Council for Chief State School Officers includes the Adolescent Literacy Toolkit. The toolkit was developed by the Council and its partners. It contains resources for states and teachers related to developing state-level professional development activities and integrating literacy strategies and best practices in core content areas. To access this resource, click here.

Connect for Kids (CFK) now offers a comprehensive collection of resources to help Americans understand and take action on healthy nutrition and obesity. Included in this toolkit are informational resources and resources for children, teens, parents and educators. To learn more, click here.

A new checklist from After-school Investments serves as a companion to their report, Promoting Physical Activity and Healthy Nutrition in After-school Settings: Strategies for Program Leaders and Policy Makers, which provided frameworks of financing strategies, ideas for after-school programming and additional resources. The new toolkit allows stakeholders to gauge how best to improve childhood nutrition and physical activity and summarizes strategies and resources that can guide discussions and planning around policy and program options.

The U.S. Department of health recently released the Stop Bullying Now! Activities Guide, a handbook of ideas for putting the Stop Bullying Now! Campaign to work in your school or community. Also available are a DVD video toolkit featuring webisodes, public service announcements, and video workshops. To view or download this guide and connect to web-based resources for the prevention of bullying, click here.

Public Private Ventures recently released a series of reports based on an eight year research and evaluation study of the Communities Organizing Resources to Advance Learning (CORAL) Initiative funded by the James Irvine Foundation. The series contains a number of publications including What Matters, What Works: Advancing Achievement After-School, Supporting Success: Why and How to Improve Quality in After-School Programs, and an After School Toolkit: Tips Techniques and Templates for Improving Program Quality.