Eric was able to interact with officials during meetings with the Department of Commerce, the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, the White House Office of Public Engagement, and Senior Advisor to the President Valerie Jarrett. In addition, he was also able to meet with several officials from the Department of Education for a more in depth interface regarding the policies and priorities of the agency moving forward. During all of these briefings Eric was able to share the successes, challenges and ideas from a New Orleans perspective to the White House in hopes to improve communication between local efforts and the administration’s.

It was an honor for me to represent both the out-of-school time world, and the New Orleans region at the Community Leaders White House Briefing. It was encouraging to have so many leaders from across the nation sharing their ideas, success stories, and experiences with each other and the White House administration.
– Eric Jensen, Director of Youth Engagement

If you are running a program that is not listed or know of an addition resource please register on the site or contact Eric Jensen (ejensen@gnoafterschool.org) as soon as possible for inclusion. Summer is a critical time for children and youth and it is vital that families have a clear idea of what activities and resources are available. Please support New Orleans children, youth, and families by sharing this important resource!

Youth Advocacy Coalition Announces Mayoral Forum
A coalition of local non-profit youth advocacy organizations led by the Afterschool Partnership has announced plans to host a mayoral candidates public forum exclusively devoted to community youth issues on Tuesday, January 5th, at 7:00pm at Walter L. Cohen High School, 3520 Dryades Street, moderated by WDSU anchor Rachel Wulff.

In addition to the Afterschool Partnership, sponsoring organizations include:

• Agenda for Children
• Children’s Defense Fund
• Family Service of Greater New Orleans
• Juvenile Justice Project of New Orleans
• Operation Reach
• Youth Empowerment Project

Youth coalition event organizers said all major mayoral candidates will be invited to participate in the unique forum, the first of its kind ever devoted exclusively to youth advocacy issues. The forum will include questions from youth and parents on subjects ranging from NORD to afterschool and summer programs, juvenile justice and funding for youth programs.

“This event will be a key benchmark in our efforts during this campaign to light a fire under our political leadership on behalf of youth,” said Gina Warner, Afterschool Partnership Executive Director. “Families and schools need more safe places and high-quality opportunities for young people to learn during the hours outside of the school day, and scores of hard working community and faith-based organizations who serve youth simply need more public support.”

The Afterschool Partnership has published a youth initiatives reform blueprint, 10 for 2010, which includes specific policy solutions for leveraging improved outcomes for underserved youth throughout the community. Plan components include:

• Committed mayoral leadership to champion children and youth programs and initiatives
• Streamlined and coordinated public and private funding resources
• Expanded opportunities for youth to learn and work
• Increased youth voice in municipal decision-making

Contact: Dara Lum Shackelford, 504.304.9591, ext 33, dlum@gnoafterschool.org

Afterschool Alliance Survey of Louisiana Households, sponsored by the JCPenney Afterschool Fund, Finds No Progress Since 2004, Vast Unmet Demand & More Children Unsupervised

Washington, DC – A new survey finds no progress in participation in afterschool programs by Louisiana youth over the last five years, even as the nation made progress and demand for afterschool programs in Louisiana increased dramatically.  The rate of participation in afterschool dropped to just 13 percent in 2009, trailing the national average of 15 percent – and a significant percentage of the state’s children are still unsupervised each afternoon after the school day ends.  The data come from the landmark America After 3PM study, conducted for the Afterschool Alliance and sponsored by the JCPenney Afterschool Fund.  It is being released this month in conjunction with Lights On Afterschool, a nationwide rally for afterschool set for October 22.

“This new study is sobering for Louisiana, which is losing ground in making afterschool programs available to children,” said Afterschool Alliance Executive Director Jodi Grant.  “The data tell us that the great majority of Louisiana parents who want their kids in afterschool programs aren’t able to find them, usually because programs aren’t available, they can’t afford the fees, or transportation issues make it impossible.  But this is a solvable problem.  These are all barriers we can and should overcome.  Quality afterschool programs keep kids safe, inspire them to learn, and help working families.  Every Louisiana family that needs an afterschool program should have access to one.”

According to the new study, fully 23 percent of the state’s schoolchildren are on their own in the afternoons, and another 15 percent are in the care of their brothers or sisters.  By comparison, 13 percent of Louisiana schoolchildren are enrolled in afterschool programs, down from 15 percent in 2004.  In addition, the parents of 52 percent of children not already in afterschool say they would enroll their kids in a program if one were available.

Ninety percent of Louisiana parents say they are satisfied with the afterschool program their child attends.

The Louisiana results can be compared to the new America After 3PM national findings:

·        The number and percentage of children participating in afterschool programs in the nation has increased significantly in the last five years, with 8.4 million children (15 percent) now participating.  That compares with 6.5 million children in 2004 (11 percent).

·        But the number of children left alone after the school day ends also has risen, to 15.1 million children (26 percent of school-age children) in 2009.  That is an increase of 800,000 children since 2004.  Thirty percent of middle schoolers (3.7 million kids) are on their own, as are four percent of elementary school children (1.1 million children).

·        The parents of 18.5 million children (38 percent) not currently participating in an afterschool program would enroll their children in a program if one were available to them, a significant increase from the 15.3 million (30 percent) seen in 2004.

·        The vast majority of parents of children in afterschool programs are satisfied with the programs their children attend, and overall public support for afterschool programs is similarly strong.  Nine in 10 parents (89 percent) are satisfied with the afterschool programs their children attend.  Eight in 10 parents support public funding for afterschool programs.

In conjunction with Lights On Afterschool events across the nation, the JCPenney Afterschool Round-Up program will kick off in JCPenney stores throughout the U.S.  From Oct. 16 to Oct. 25, customers will have the opportunity to “round-up” their JCPenney purchases to the nearest whole dollar and donate the difference to afterschool programs in their local communities that provide life-enriching programs for children in need. Last year, through “Round Up” and other initiatives, JCPenney contributed approximately $260,000 in Louisiana to support local afterschool initiatives.

“With more than $80 million contributed to afterschool programs over the past 10 years, JCPenney stands out among the nation’s corporations for helping to frame and solve the afterschool issue and increasing access to afterschool programs that provide meaningful activities for children in need,” Grant added.

The America After 3PM report and accompanying data are available online at www.afterschoolalliance.org. CONTACT:  Gretchen Wright, 202.371.1999

Findings from America After 3PM are based on 29,754 parent/guardian responses to survey questions about after school child care arrangements during the 2008-2009 school year.  RTi, a market research firm, conducted the survey and analyzed the data for the Afterschool Alliance.  The entire survey was sponsored by the JCPenney Afterschool Fund.  RTi also conducted the 2004 America After 3PM household survey.

That is why, on October 22, at more than 7,500 sites across the nation, Americans will rally in support of afterschool programs, as part of the Afterschool Alliance’s tenth annual celebration of Lights On Afterschool.  For more information or to find a local event, visit www.afterschoolalliance.org, or contact the Afterschool Alliance media office at 202.371.1999.

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The Afterschool Alliance is a nonprofit public awareness and advocacy organization working to ensure that all children have access to quality afterschool programs. More information is available at www.afterschoolalliance.org.

The JCPenney Afterschool Fund is a charitable organization committed to providing children in need with access to life-enriching afterschool programs that inspire children to be smart, strong and socially responsible. To date, JCPenney and the JCPenney Afterschool Fund have contributed more than $80 million to local afterschool programs in every JCPenney community through partnerships with the YMCA of the USA, Boys & Girls Clubs of America, National 4-H and FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology). For more information, visit www.jcpenneyafterschool.org.

Formed in 2008, the C2E Collaborative coordinated a networking event among school representatives and community resource providers in March 2009, and published the C2E Notebook, which details more than 100 organizations whose programming is offered to public schools and public school students. The C2E Notebook closes the knowledge gap about the availability of programs among school leadership teams. Armed with current, relevant information, every public school community is now better equipped to engage those programs which enrich the school experience for children. Information on the C2E Collaborative and a PDF version of the C2E Notebook are available on the website. The Connect2Educate (C2E) Collaborative www.connect2educate.org

The Connect2Educate (C2E) Collaborative is an alliance of diverse organizations including Greater New Orleans Afterschool Partnership, Communities In Schools-New Orleans, Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities, Save Our Schools – New Orleans, and Start the Adventure in Reading, and over 100 community resource providers.

Some of the participants included: New Orleans Police Superintendent Warren Riley, Orleans Parish District Attorney Leon Cannizzaro, Jefferson Parish Sheriff Newell Normand and Jefferson Parish District Attorney Paul Connick, as well as criminal and juvenile judges and representatives from non-profit agencies who work with youth and those battling substance abuse.

This was one of eight roundtables around the country, with Director Kerlikowske, aimed at developing a National Drug Control Strategy under the Obama Administration.

Officials with Afterschool Partnership and national project partner, Youthline America, today unveiled Youth Mapping Iniative, a city block-by-block effort by trained youth to identify and collect information on neighborhood businesses, organizations and services that exist to serve youth and families.

Mapping New Orleans begins by teaching high school students and adult supervisors techniques for canvassing community districts to amass important information on youth resources. All New Orleans data will be compiled and published into the website neworleans.ilivehere.info, where information will feed into the national website www.ilivehere.info. The websites will provide youth and adults easy access to information specific to their zip codes.

Gina Warner, executive director of the Greater New Orleans Afterschool Partnership, Mapping New Orleans project sponsor, said mapping activities started this spring in Central City and the St. Roch community and that already some 180 locations serving youth and families have been identified.
Warner pointed out the dual benefits of the project:

“First, this project teaches young people a specific skill-set for building and managing a database of youth and family resources in their communities. Second, their work product itself becomes an incredibly valuable resource for informing the larger community about what important services are available or lacking in certain city neighborhoods.”

James Logan, project director of Youthline America, said the project meets young people’s desires to adapt technology to education:

“Mapping is a great opportunity to connect the curiosity of young people with the potential of technology. In addition, the mapping experience provides them with training in a number of transferable work skills, including interviewing, public speaking and computer technologies.”

Criminal justice officials have hailed the Mapping project for its strong potential in helping decrease neighborhood crime. “Programs like this encourage youth to make safe choices rather than letting them fall into a cycle of violence, drug use and other unhealthy behaviors,” commented James Letten, US Attorney for the Eastern District of Louisiana.

Warner said the project will be completed by the end of 2010 but that trained students will update that dynamic content in the database regularly in the future. The Kellogg Foundation provided major funding for Mapping New Orleans to the Greater New Orleans Afterschool Partnership.