COVID Policy
Update on CDE EXLD FAQs & Interview with Woodcraft Rangers
CA Update: Aug 10, 2020
The California AfterSchool Network is hosting weekly interviews with Michael Funk, Division Director for the California Department of Education Expanded Learning Division (EXLD).
In the 15th Fireside Chat we discuss the recently posted FAQs from the EXLD in light of the release of Governor Gavin Newsom’s Pandemic Plan for Learning and Safe Schools.
This week we are also excited to be joined by the team at Woodcraft Rangers. We are joined by Julee Brooks – Chief Executive Officer, Danny Salas – Director of Expanded Learning, and Helen Santos – Director of Digital Learning. They share with us how they have built connections and engagement with family, their ever-improving quality virtual engagement opportunities with students, and how they are supporting staff while addressing health and safety issues. Learn more about Woodcraft Rangers: https://woodcraftrangers.org
Update on Recent Governor Guidance & Interview with EDMO on Virtual Learning
CA Update: July 23, 2020
The California AfterSchool Network is hosting weekly interviews with Michael Funk, Division Director for the California Department of Education Expanded Learning Division.
In this 14th Fireside Chat Michael discusses the most recently approved guidance from the CDE and Department of Finance in light of the release of Governor Gavin Newsom’s Pandemic Plan for Learning and Safe Schools last Friday. Written guidance will be forthcoming.
This week we are also excited to be joined by the wonderful co-founders of Edventure More (also known as EDMO) – Eduardo Caballero, Co-Founder & Executive Director and Sharon Mor, Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer. They share with us how they quickly pivoted to providing quality virtual opportunities, their emphasis on equity (and expanding access to their programs), student engagement strategies, and more. Learn more about EDMO: https://campedmo.org
Expanded Learning Guidance on Senate Bill 98
CA Update: July 20, 2020
Please see below for an update from the Expanded Learning Division of the California Department of Education:
Dear Expanded Learning Grantees:
We are happy to announce the guidance for Senate Bill 98, Statutes of 2020 is available for Fiscal Year 2020–21, and is posted on the California Department of Education’s website at https://www.cde.ca.gov/ls/ex/sb98guidance.asp.
Expanded Learning This Fall – Interview with Sacramento Partners
CA Update: July 14, 2020
The California AfterSchool Network is hosting weekly interviews with Michael Funk, Division Director for the California Department of Education Expanded Learning Division.
In this 13th Fireside Chat we are excited to be joined by some of our outstanding partners here in Sacramento – Jason Smith and Monik Vega from Sacramento Chinese Community Service Center and Dr. Gema Godina-Martinez, Principal for Washington Elementary School. This week, and over the coming weeks, we will be using this platform to highlight programs that are engaging and leading in conversations around what school and Expanded Learning look like this Fall and over the next school year, and how they serve their students and communities.
Interview with Michael Funk, CA Budget Protects Afterschool
CA Update: June 30, 2020
The California AfterSchool Network is hosting weekly interviews with Michael Funk, Division Director for the California Department of Education Expanded Learning Division.
In this 12th fireside chat we briefly discuss updates on the signed CA Budget and Budget Trailer Bill Language. We will continue to dive deeper into these issues over the coming weeks. See CAN’s most recent newsletter for more details.
Interview with Michael Funk & Updates on the CA Budget, the Executive Order Extension, and Reopening of Schools
CA Update: June 16, 2020
The California AfterSchool Network is hosting weekly interviews with Michael Funk, Division Director for the California Department of Education Expanded Learning Division.
In this 11th fireside chat we discuss updates on the CA Budget, including potential Budget Trailer Bill Language, the extension of the Governor’s Executive Order impacting Expanded Learning programs, and CDE Guidance on the Reopening of Schools, including the impacts on Expanded Learning. We will continue to dive deeper into these issues over the coming weeks.
Links to documents referenced during the video:
Executive Order Extended Until June 30, 2020
CA Update: Monday, June 8, 2020
An update from the California Department of Education:
Dear Expanded Learning Grantees,
This email is to inform everyone that the Executive Order N-45-20 has been extended until June 30, 2020. The information is available on the California Department of Education’s COVID-19 Guidance for Expanded Learning Programs web page at www.cde.ca.gov/ls/ex/covid19info.asp.
Interview with Michael Funk & Think Together On Black Lives Matter and Expanded Learning as Social Justice Work
CA Update: June 3, 2020 (CORRECTED LINK)
The California AfterSchool Network is hosting weekly interviews with Michael Funk, Division Director for the California Department of Education Expanded Learning Division.
In this tenth interview, we are joined by Tommy Brewer, Cindy Martinez, and Angelina Hernadez with Think Together. The conversation is centered on the events of the last week, Expanded Learning as a form of Social Justice/Social Change work, and critical advocacy efforts to support this work. A special thank you to all of our guests for showing up raw, unscripted, and human during these challenging times.
You can read CAN’s full statement in solidarity of Black Lives here.
ASES Kids Code Frequently Asked Questions
CDE Update: June 1, 2020
Dear After School Education and Safety Kids Code Grantees,
Thank you for your patience while the Expanded Learning Division (EXLD) has been focused on a lot of issues during these unprecedented times. Below are a few Frequently Asked Questions about the After School Education and Safety (ASES) Kids Code grant.
Interview with Michael Funk & Sweetwater Union High School District
CA Update: May 27, 2020
The California AfterSchool Network is hosting weekly interview with Michael Funk, Division Director for the California Department of Education Expanded Learning Division.
In this ninth interview, we are joined by Esther Parrenas, Site Coordinator for Southwest Middle School and Cesar Fernandez with Sweetwater Union School District to share how they have been engaging with their students and families during the COVID-19 school closures, as well as how they are engaged in the planning for re-opening of schools.
Interview with Michael Funk & CA3 on the Governor’s Proposed Budget
CA Update: May 21, 2020
The California AfterSchool Network is hosting weekly intervieww with Michael Funk, Division Director for the California Department of Education Expanded Learning Division.
In this eighth interview we are joined by Jen Dietrich from California Afterschool Advocacy Alliance, also known as CA3, to talk about the Governor’s May Revise Budget that was released last Thursday and the potential impacts for Expanded Learning in California. We are also joined by CA3 members Malia Villarreal and Mike Snell from the California Teaching Fellows Foundation to speak to the potential budget impacts at a programmatic level.
Everyone can take action to protect our programs: Text “Afterschool” to 52886
For more details visit www.saveafterschool.com.
Governor’s May Revise-After School Education and Safety Program
CA Update: Friday, May 15, 2020
A message from the California Department of Education Expanded Learning Division:
Dear Expanded Learning Grantees,
As you may be aware, yesterday our Governor gave the annual “May Revise” update to his budget plan, which was originally released in January. Obviously, a lot has happened since January, and the impact of COVID-19 to our California economy was reflected in the budget numbers released yesterday. Since education is the largest sector funded by the budget, a significant impact to the economy means a reduction in revenue, including revenues for education. This sobering reality will dramatically impact our own agency, counties, districts, schools, and, ultimately, our students and staff.
Interview with Michael Funk on Expanded Learning Services Offered During COVID-19
CA Update: May 13, 2020
The California AfterSchool Network is hosting nearly weekly interview with Michael Funk, Division Director for the California Department of Education Expanded Learning Division.
This seventh interview provides a quick update on the services being provided by the Expanded Learning field during COVID-19 and the field survey to collect this data.
The Expanded Learning Division (EXLD) is surveying all grantees to discover what services are being offered to students and families during the period of school closures due to COVID-19. The EXLD would also like to understand how expanded learning programs will be engaged with students and families when campuses reopen.
This survey should be completed by organizational staff that are familiar with the funding streams and services provided.
The survey is fairly brief and can be found here.
Interview with Healdsburg USD and Healdsburg Community Services Dept
CA Update: May 6, 2020
The California AfterSchool Network is hosting near-weekly interviews with Michael Funk, Division Director for the California Department of Education Expanded Learning Division.
In this sixth interview, we are joined by Healdsburg Unified School District and their CBO partner – the City’s Community Services Department. They share what they have been doing to respond to COVID in the immediate, and also how they are partnering around plans for reopening schools in the Fall.
Interviewees include:
- Erin Fender, Director of Curriculum and Instruction, Healdsburg USD
- Mark Themig, Community Services Director, City of Healdsburg Community Services Dept
- Dave Jahns, Recreation Manager, City of Healdsburg Community Services Dept
- Grace Guerrero, Afterschool Program Director, City of Healdsburg
Interview with Marcus Strother & Malik Ibarra from SCUSD
CA Update: April 29, 2020
The California AfterSchool Network is hosting near weekly interview with Michael Funk, Division Director for the California Department of Education Expanded Learning Division.
In this fifth interview, we are joined by Marcus Strother, the Director of Youth Development from Saacramento City Unified School District, and one of his students Malik Ibarra a senior at West Campus. This conversation focuses on what is happening at a district level, how districts in partnership with their community organizations can continue to serve our youth and communities, and what some of our students are experiencing during this time.
Extending Expanded Learning Grants and Attendance and Expenditure Reporting
CA Update: April 27, 2020
Grant Extension
The California Department of Education (CDE), Expanded Learning Division (EXLD) is pleased to announce that the After School Education and Safety (ASES), 21st Century Community Learning Centers (CCLC), and the 21st Century High School After School Safety and Enrichment for Teens Program Grants will be extended until December 31, 2020. We are working on an amendment to the AO-400 grant agreement. We will be adding additional grant assurances for the grant extension time period.
Interview with Michael Funk on Grant Extensions
CA Update: April 27, 2020
The California AfterSchool Network is hosting near weekly interview with Michael Funk, Division Director for the California Department of Education Expanded Learning Division.
This fourth interview provides a quick update on the status of extending Expanded Learning grants. The California Department of Education will be extending all ASES, 21st CCLC, and ASSESTs grants by six months. Instead of ending on June 30, the closeout date for the grants will be December 31, 2020. This also includes ASES Frontier Transportation grants and the grants that support the System of Support for Expanded Learning. Check out the video for more information and the EXLD Guidance on Extending Expanded Learning Grants and Attendance and Expenditure Reporting.
Interview with Michael Funk & Teresa Ayon of Anaheim Family YMCA
CA Update: April 23, 2020
The California AfterSchool Network is hosting near weekly interview with Michael Funk, Division Director for the California Department of Education Expanded Learning Division.
This third interview mostly focuses on a conversation with Teresa Ayon from the Anaheim Family YMCA, digging into what our program providers are doing to continue to serve our communities during the COVID-19 crisis, including keeping workers employed and staying connected to the field.
Implementation Process Begins for CARES Act Education Funds
Federal Update: April 15, 2020
While the CARES Act was signed into law on March 27, the $30.75 billion Education Stabilization Fund authorized by the legislation is still in the early stages of the implementation process led by the US Department of Education. Four grant programs were created through the CARES Act under the umbrella of the State Education Stabilization Fund:
Interview with Michael Funk on Governor’s Executive Order and EXLD Guidance Memo
CA Update: April 13, 2020
The California AfterSchool Network is hosting a weekly interview with Michael Funk, Division Director for the California Department of Education Expanded Learning Division.
This second interview primarily covers the Governors Executive Order that was released on April 4, 2020 and the subsequent guidance from the Expanded Learning Division that was released on April 10, 2020.