"It is not enough to send our kids to school and hope they learn what they need to do to go on to college and a career. It’s not enough simply to wish our children would stay out of trouble when we can’t be with them. Afterschool participants receive better grades, miss fewer days of school, and have higher high school graduation rates. Unsupervised teens are 37% more likely to become pregnant and unsupervised children are at a greater risk for truancy, poor grades, depression, and lower achievement."
-- Senator Kay Hagan, NC CAP SYNERGY Summit 2008

This Action Page includes:

• Ways to Connect with NC CAP
• Standards and Criteria for Afterschool Programs
• Physical Activity Resources
• Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Resources
• Advocacy Measures
• Helpful Statistics

 
Click to join NC_CAP!

Or visit http://groups.yahoo.com/group/nc_cap/

NC CAP e-Newsletter
Sign up to receive our free electronic newsletter, the Afterschool Observer. This newsletter is distributed every month to over 4,300 subscribers, including all legislators, county commissioners, superintendents, mayors, select city council members, afterschool advocates, community leaders, and educators. The Afterschool Observer offers national, state and local perspectives on afterschool issues.


Become a Fan of NC CAP on Facebook!
NC CAP has joined the ranks of nonprofits using social media networks to expand its reach across the state. Our new Facebook page connects afterschool supporters with the latest news about our work, including updates on SYNERGY, opportunities for resources and prizes, such as tickets to sports games across the state, and other news. There also opportunities to join discussion boards and share pictures of your afterschool events.

Help us spread the word by suggesting 3 of your friends become “Fans” today! Click the Facebook link below to join the site. 
                                                           


NC Afterschool Professional Development Training Database
The NC Afterschool Professional Development Work Group has created an online, centralized database of afterschool training opportunities. The database is searchable by filters (county, staff level, content area, etc). Visit the site to learn more!

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Afterschool Standards

NC CAP Established Standards of Excellence Self-Assessment Tool: K-12
One of the first steps for the North Carolina Center for Afterschool Programs (NC CAP) was to examine how programs best support children and youth. Representing the diversity of North Carolina afterschool programs, the NC CAP advisory board considered the thinking and experience of providers, researchers, and other professionals, in North Carolina and across the country, to determine what high quality programs have in common. In response, the center endorses nine quality indicators described in the Tool. Understanding that improving quality is an on-going process that includes careful self-assessment, NC CAP offers this useful tool that can help programs chart their progress in each of the listed areas. Click on the below image to access the Standards.

North Carolina Afterschool Funders Criteria
The Afterschool Funders Criteria were developed in 2009 by a group of state and federal funders of afterschool programs, including the NC Departments of Juvenile Justice, Public Instruction, Health and Human Services and Governor’s Crime Commission. Led by the NC Center for Afterschool Programs, the agencies designed the criteria as a roadmap for afterschool programs to develop a quality baseline and improve the quality of services to children and youth in North Carolina.

The criteria have been adopted by the NC Committee on Dropout Prevention, NC Departments of Juvenile Justice, Public Instruction (21st Century Community Learning Centers and Supplemental Education Services), Health and Human Services (Division of Child Development and TANF) and Governor’s Crime Commission. Each agency is incorporating the criteria into their Request for Proposal (RFP) and evaluation criteria, beginning with the 2009-2010 academic year. Click on the image below for an electronic version of the criteria.

NC CAP has created a supplementary criteria manual to provide additional resources for afterschool programs to implement the criteria. Additional quality resources are available on this website, or by calling (919) 781-6833.


Core Competencies for Professional Development coming soon!

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Physical Activity Resources
With the release of the Move More NC: Recommended Standards for After-School Physical Activity and an emphasized focus on keeping children healthy and active, many afterschool programs need help with finding fun, creative ways of providing physical activity to the young people they serve. The following is a collection of resources that will help with that focus.

Check out www.MoveMoreAfterschoolNC.com, a website to support physical activity in after-school programs. Each page on the site provides helpful tools and resources to support the recommendations in the Move More North Carolina: Recommended Standards for After-School Physical Activity. Released in the spring of 2009, the standards outline how after-school programs can contribute to young people meeting the recommended 60 minutes or more of daily physical activity.

The standards are available for download on the Move More After School site or by clicking the image above. You will also find a wealth of resources to support the standards including parent resources, funding opportunities and upcoming trainings. In addition the site contains a variety of physical activities that you can use in your program. Check it out today!

If you have any questions about the Move More After-School Standards, contact Lori Schneider from the North Carolina Division of Public Health at 919-707-5224 or Lori.Schneider@nc.dhhs.gov.  


The Move More NC Recommended Standards for After-School Physical Activity were released during SYNERGY 2009: Move into Action for Afterschool. Heba and Ed, contestants from NBC's The Biggest Loser, and Dr. Robert Schwartz from Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center were on hand to discuss the importance of keeping kids active. Click the images below to watch videos from the conference.

Move More Standards on the Governor's Blog!
Check it out by clicking here.


Afterschool Energizers from NC Dept. of Public Instruction
AfterSchool Energizers is the third edition of classroom energizers and developed specifically for 21st Century Community Learning Centers.  The afterschool environment is different from the in-school environment. Students often arrive at afterschool programs after a day of structured learning and they need time to move around.  The goal of AfterSchool Energizers is to provide activities and movements that students will enjoy doing as they learn.  Students can learn character development, life skills training and academic enrichment through the use of AfterSchool Energizers activities and reflections. AfterSchool Energizers provides ideas for more than 50 activities including “Bring the Noise, Bring the Funk,” “Oh No You Didn’t!” and “Racing to Good Character.” Can be found on DPI's website, HS137, 2009, $14


Fun, free activities for children to promote physical activity!
This website was developed for 21st Century Afterschool programs in Florida.
The games on this website have been chosen with three specific goals in mind. The first is to maximize each student's participation time. Secondly, we want to focus on fitness components we hope will continue with the child into adulthood. And thirdly, we should avoid eliminating or singling-out students. These types of games encourage children to be physically active. Traditional games often do not incorporate these goals. However, many games can be modified to be more appropriate. When activities are planned with these goals in mind, students are more likely to have a positive, enjoyable experience. Therefore, they are more likely to continue being active throughout their lifetime. On this website, you will find fun, easy activities that require a minimal amount of equipment.

Monthly Updates from the Physical Activity and Nutrition Branch (NC Division of Public Health)
August 2009
Dec 2009-Jan 2010 Physical Activity              Dec 2009-Jan 2010 Nutrition
February 2010 Physical Activity                     February 2010 Nutrition
March 2010 Physical Activity                          March 2010 Nutrition
April 2010 Physical Activity                             April 2010 Nutrition
May 2010 Physical Activity                              May 2010 Nutrition
June 2010 Physical Activity                            June 2010 Nutrition


New York State Afterschool Network (NYSAN) Policy Brief: Expanding the Role of Afterschool Programs in Promoting Health and Wellness
Physical health and wellness are among the core developmental needs critical to child well-being, and afterschool programs are venues that can support good health by providing nutritious food, creating opportunities for physical activity, and offering health education. This policy brief will focus on the issues related to child and youth health, the resources afterschool programs provide, and how to expand the role of afterschool programs to better promote healthy physical development.


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STEM Resources

News 14 Carolina Highlights NC Afterschool STEM Initiatives
In partnership with Time Warner Cable, News 14 Carolina is beginning a new weekly series that will highlight STEM initiatives across the state, with an emphasis on STEM in afterschool programs serving middle-school aged youth. Afterschool programs successfully infusing STEM activities into their curriculum will be featured each week throughout 2010. The new media campaign offers an exciting opportunity to raise awareness of the benefits of high quality afterschool programs.

News 14 Carolina is collecting nominations for afterschool programs, schools, and other STEM initiatives to highlight in the coming weeks and months. Filming of the first sites has already begun and will be ongoing throughout the year. Programs must be located in the Time Warner Cable and News 14 coverage areas. Select Western counties and several counties in the Northeastern part of the state are not eligible for the initiative at this time, but may be invited to submit nominations at a later date. Click here to view the initial video on the News 14 website.

News 14 Carolina will contact nominated sites directly to conduct filming for a news segment. Please note that there is opportunity to conduct multiple segments at a particular site, such as a general segment on the afterschool program, along with other in-depth features on youth or volunteers.

To nominate your afterschool program, please send a 5-6 sentence description of the STEM activities in your afterschool program, along with full contact information to camm@news14.com. Please also copy Jamie Knowles, NC CAP Director, on any correspondence at jknowles@ncforum.org. Contact Knowles with any questions at (919) 781-6833 ext. 115.


NC CAP's SYNERGY 2010 Afterschool Conference - STEMulate Your Afterschool Program!
225 afterschool providers, community leaders, and elected officials attended NC CAP’s annual statewide SYNERGY conference in Greensboro from March 1-2. The two day conference focused on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) topics - how to incorporate curriculum, lessons and activities into your afterschool program.  Nationally renowned Foundations, Inc hosted a pre-conference workshop on incorporating STEM into afterschool programs. Dr. Robert Panoff, Executive Director of the Shodor Foundation, keynote speaker, addressed the importance of better preparing students in the fields of math and science for college and future careers. Video footage of that plenary session is coming soon!

Click here for a list of STEM-related websites, given to our SYNERGY attendees.


STEM Education News Goes Online in North Carolina
Local Tech Wire recently announced a new partnership with the NC STEM Community Collaborative, MCNC, and the North Carolina Science, Mathematics, and Technology Education Center (SMT Center) to advocate for the importance of STEM education and to launch a special section devoted entirely to coverage of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education. Today, that new section goes live at www.localtechwire.com.

With content provided by NC STEM, MCNC, the SMT Center and other sources, this "STEM News " section has editorial plans to touch on legislative and policy issues, funding opportunities, industry impacts and economic development, knowledge workforce demands and transformation, discussions on 21st century schools, the importance of high-speed connectivity in classrooms, Race to the Top, STEM events, what local communities are doing on the ground, exclusive interviews with state and national thought leaders, and much more.

This weekly update will provide critical information and the real-world impact STEM has in North Carolina and nationwide. Additionally, Local Tech Wire will be inviting STEM students to its Executive Exchange programs, which focus on information technology and life science issues, and plans to sponsor a STEM-focused Executive Exchange later this year.

"Local Tech Wire has been an aggressive provider of STEM coverage in the past, and we will be even more so in the future, " said LTW Editor Rick Smith. "Workforce preparation is a growing concern in North Carolina and the United States. Companies need more well-educated employees who are skilled in STEM. Our intention with this new section is to help bring more attention to STEM. By involving students, we hope to ultimately encourage more young people to choose a career in STEM."

"The reality is that North Carolina's economic future is tied to having a STEM-educated workforce in all areas of the state," added Karl Rectanus, leader of NC STEM, a state organization working with communities to ensure students engage in rigorous STEM education. "This exciting new section in LTW will provide leaders in the tech and business sectors information to help us all drive STEM education and our economy further faster."

MCNC President and CEO Joe Freddoso said there continues to be a strong link between high-quality STEM education and economic development. "Through Local Tech Wire, we will highlight the good work being done in communities all over the state, pose and inspire new ideas, share leading-edge news, collaborate with state and national experts, and increase awareness of STEM education to ensure all of our students are prepared for 21st century jobs, " added Freddoso. "This will provide an outlet to gain additional understanding of the role of STEM in our economic prosperity, improved healthcare, and care of the environment. Our future depends on it."

"The importance of STEM education applies not only to students, but to the citizens of this state, " concurred Sam Houston, president of the SMT Center, which aims to systematically improve performance in science, mathematics, and technology preK-12 education. "The future of the state 's economy is knowledge based, and that begins with STEM."

Story ideas and contributions are welcome. For information about how you, your company, school or organization can participate, contact Rick Smith at Local Tech Wire (rsmith@wral.com) or Noah Garrett at NGC Communications (noah@thinkngc.com). 


MCNC
MCNC provides advanced communications technologies and support services that enable access to 21st century learning applications that improve teaching, learning, research and collaboration among North Carolina's K-20 education community. MCNC, through its management of NCREN and its predecessor networks, has serviced the advanced networking technology needs of the University of North Carolina General Administration institutions and other higher education clients for the past 20 years.


NC STEM Community Collaborative
The NC STEM Community Collaborative helps communities throughout North Carolina ensure that all students engage in rigorous and relevant science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education that provides them with good choices in life and bolsters the economic strength of their communities. The NC STEM Community Collaborative is funded through the generous support of MCNC, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Battelle Memorial Institute and community partners.


North Carolina Science, Mathematics, and Technology Education Center (SMT Center)
The SMT Center's mission is to systematically improve performance in science, mathematics, and technology preK-12 education as a means of providing all children in North Carolina with the necessary knowledge and skills in science, mathematics, and technology to have successful careers, be good citizens, and advance the economy of the state.The impetus for founding the SMT Center came in 1995 when the Public School Forum of North Carolina surveyed the status of science and math education in the state and found that despite a wealth of resources, education in mathematics and the sciences had failed to live up to its potential. Six years later, it was clear that some things had changed since the Forum's report, but more was needed. After two years of preliminary research and with the aid of a group of policy and education experts from across the country, the Burroughs Wellcome Fund launched the SMT Center in 2002. A 22-member board of directors comprising N.C. leaders in education, business, and government oversees the center.


Coalition for Science After School

Informal environments beyond the school day promote flexibility that lets children engage in science in the same way they play sports or create art. Playing with bubbles, blocks, robots and plants not only helps students when it comes time to learn physics, chemistry and biology—but it also sparks an interest in science that translates to future classroom and career success. The Coalition for Science After School strives to make science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) integral components of afterschool programming, bringing together the experience and commitment of hundreds of individuals and organizations to improve the quality and quantity of STEM learning opportunities.

The National After School Science Directory, through the Coalition for Science After School and Time Warner Cable's Connect a Million Minds, is a searchable database designed to increase access to high-quality science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education beyond the classroom for youth and families across the nation. The Directory houses thousands of STEM opportunities, submitted by science centers, museums, schools and other youth-serving organizations. Search our Directory to view opportunities to connect the America’s youth to high-quality STEM learning experiences.

Connect a Million Minds Initiative
As Time Warner Cable continues their Connect a Million Minds initiative to support STEM programming in out of school time opportunities, they have available funding for middle school afterschool STEM programming. Funds from this grant will allow organizations to provide high-quality STEM programming to the youth that they serve. Click the title above to apply for the Connect a Million Minds funding. Applications are on a rolling basis, but programs are encouraged to apply soon while funds are still available. If you have questions about this funding, contact Dan Ballister (dan.ballister@twcable.com) or Stephanie Richin (Stephanie.richin@twcable.com).  

Programs are also encouraged to join the Time Warner Cable connectory above– a great resource to publicize STEM events and look for volunteers. Time Warner Cable employee volunteers are constantly looking for new volunteer opportunities with afterschool programs.
 
Why do Science Afterschool?
The After-School Corporation recently released a series of short videos that make the case for doing science after school. The videos are each 1-2 minutes in length, and show kids and their group leaders engaging in lively hands-on science activities in after-school programs.


New STEM Resource!
The Internet Science and Technology Fair (ISTF) was created to afford pre-college students in grades three (3) through twelve (12) an opportunity to experience the excitement of researching solutions to real-world problems involving science, engineering and other technical fields of study. Students primarily use information and communication technology tools to conduct their on-line investigations. They work as a team, communicate with professionals, apply science inquiry and present their research findings in a professional manner. These experiences help students build individual and collaborative study and work skills. The scientists, engineers, doctors, researchers, and technicians of tomorrow reside in the classrooms of today. The ISTF provides teachers with a means to integrate on-line science, technology, and engineering into their curricula and help their students realize the possibilities of technical career futures.


New Resource on STEM Learning After School: The CBASS Frontiers in Urban Science Exploration Resource Guide
We would like to alert you to a new resource: the Frontiers in Urban Science Exploration Resource Guide, produced by the Collaborative for Building After-School Systems (CBASS) to promote informal science education after-school. The Resource Guide describes Frontiers in Urban Science Exploration (FUSE), created by The After-School Corporation (TASC) to stimulate a culture shift that leads to greater opportunities for kids to experience informal science education after school, as well as in school and during summers. The guide, part of a national initiative to promote FUSE, presents promising STEM models from around the country and provides links and information about STEM research reports, curricula and evaluation resources. FUSE and this resource guide were developed with support from Noyce Foundation.

The resource guide is available through the CBASS website. For more information, please contact Jessica Donner, Director, CBASS at jdonner@tascorp.org; 646-943-8738.

Free, High Quality STEM Resource - SMILE
SMILE (Science and Math Informal Learning Educators) is an online resource for out-of-school educators looking for high-quality STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) activities. Activities are searchable by subject, resource type, activity time, and more.

Maverick Motorsports sweeps National FastTrack RC STEM League Finals
Mallard Creek High School’s Maverick Motorsports team blew away the competition at the annual FTRC National STEM League 2010 Finals held at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach Florida. Completing against teams from Texas, Georgia, Florida, South Carolina and North Carolina, Maverick Motorsports earned 1st place awards in 5 categories including the STEM League Championship and Alternative Energy Innovations and 2nd place in Race Engineering Events. In addition to trophies the team received over $2,000.00 in grant funds to further STEM Education at the high school.

Maverick Motorsports is affiliated with FastTrack RC a National STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) Challenge League Education program. FastTrack RC students (7th-12th grade) form teams around 1:10 scale radio-controlled cars. Teams mirror professional race teams and include Management, Marketing, Engineering and Design activities. Teams have been accumulating points since September 2009. Point leaders from around the United States participated in the national competition at Daytona International Speedway. This is the 3rd annual competition and the second year in a row that the Mavericks have won the national competition. Also participating in the event from North Carolina was Garinger’s New Tech High School.


American Scientist Online
Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Society, delivers Science in the News Daily and Science in the News Weekly, free e-newseltters, directly to your e-mail address. These article collections are concise news roundups that will keep you up-to-date on the latest developments in the fast-paced world of science and technology. Visit the website to learn more or to subscribe.


Great Science for Girls
The Educational Equity Center at the Academy for Educational Development (EEC/AED) through a grant from the National Science Foundation has developed Great Science for Girls: Extension Services for Gender Equity in Science through After School Programs (GSG), to provide inquiry-based, informal science learning programs that will stimulate girls’ curiosity, interest and persistence in STEM and break down the barriers of gender stereotyping.


Afterschool Universe: Bringing Astronomy Down to Earth
Afterschool Universe is an astronomy program targeted at middle school children in out-of-school-time settings. Afterschool Universe explores basic astronomy concepts through engaging hands-on activities, and focuses on the Universe outside the solar system. Afterschool Universe currently consists of 12 sessions. Each session typically requires 45-60 minutes for implementation. The program is flexibly structured and can be implemented on a schedule that best suits your programming needs. It can be run in a variety of settings that include astronomy days, summer camps, or year-long afterschool programming.


Toward a Systematic Evidence-Base for Science in Out-of-School Time: The Role of Assessment
After-school programs are gaining recognition as a setting that holds great potential for increasing child and youth literacy and engagement in science. With this awareness comes a call for evidence that demonstrates after-school programs’ impacts on students’ knowledge, engagement, and interest in science. Consequently, there are a growing number of evaluations of science after-school programs. For these evaluations, a multitude of instruments have been developed to assess the impact of after-school science programs. Although the use of these instruments has contributed to the assessment of after-school science programs, the field now needs to examine critically the most efficacious and efficient means of assessment, whether these assessments should differ across programs, and how they relate to constructs of science learning and program quality. To address these fundamental questions, the Noyce Foundation, aleading strategic funder in the after-school science field, requisitioned this study to review and report on the current state and needs of the after-school science assessment world. In this report, we approach the assessment of after-school (and summer) science
programs from a set of significant descriptive and interpretive perspectives, including What instruments are currently being used in the field? Is there a need for the creation of generalized assessment tools that could be used to compare across programs? What would be the most useful structure for creating generalized assessments?


Incorporating Technology Into Out-Of-School Time Programs
Children and youth are growing up in an increasingly technology-saturated world. Digital devices, the Internet, and interactive media have become ubiquitous. As a result, young people are not only becoming expert users of technological devices, but technology and technologically-based learning environments are extending student learning beyond the conventional classroom. This brief draws on results from non-experimental research and the insights of practitioners to outline the benefits, challenges, and strategies associated with incorporating technology into out-of-school time programs.


Generation M2: Media in the Lives of 8- to 18-Year-Olds
With technology allowing nearly 24-hour media access as children and teens go about their daily lives, the amount of time young people spend with entertainment media has risen dramatically, especially among minority youth, according to a study released by the Kaiser Family Foundation. Generation M2: Media in the Lives of 8- to 18-Year-Olds is the third in a series of large-scale, nationally representative surveys by the Foundation about young people’s media use. It includes data from all three waves of the study (1999, 2004, and 2009), and is among the largest and most comprehensive publicly available sources of information about media use among American youth. 


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Advocacy

Tri-State Summit: Meeting the Needs of Disadvantaged Youth in the Afterschool Hours
With support from the Atlantic Philanthropies, The James B. Hunt, Jr. Institute for Educational Leadership and Policy, in partnership with the Georgia Afterschool Investment Council, the North Carolina Center for Afterschool Programs, and the South Carolina Afterschool Alliance, sponsored the Tri-State Summit: Meeting the Needs of Disadvantaged Youth in the Afterschool Hours. This Summit was an unprecedented gathering of state leaders in the fields of education, juvenile justice, health and human services, and afterschool. Watch the video from the event on the Hunt Insitute website by clicking the image below. 

To access the full report, click here (PDF copy)

                                        


Effective Advocacy at all Levels of Government
This publication resulted from a partnership between the Center for Lobbying in the Public Interest and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. The Center for Lobbying in the Public Interest promotes, supports, and protects 501(c)(3) nonprofit advocacy and lobbying in order to strengthen participation in a democratic society and advance charitable missions. CLPI seeks to make advocacy a core part of nonprofit work. To make this vision a reality, CLPI's trainings and resources include a dual focus on organizational capacity and strategy to accelerate nonprofit engagement in and philanthropic support for advocacy.
For more information, please visit CLPI's website at www.clpi.org.

Kids Included Together
The National Training Center on Inclusion (NTCI) was established to support the overall mission of Kids Included Together (KIT) through training, technical assistance and resources of the highest quality for staff at all levels of experience. It is our goal to provide an empowering learning environment that helps providers build practical skills that can be immediately implemented in programs. KIT's National Training Center on Inclusion utilizes a combination of the latest technology coupled with live presentations by dynamic and experienced trainers and practitioners to support providers in welcoming children of all abilities.

Every Child Matters Announces New Website
Take a few minutes to have a look around at www.everychildmatters.org. It's a great place to learn about the presidential candidates' schedules and positions on children's issues, to see reports and polls, and to get ideas from other states on making children a priority in this election!


Action for Children Releases Young Advocates Toolkit
Action for Children North Carolina has released a new publication designed to teach young advocates (middle school through college) strategies to achieve effective public policy and to provide information on the importance of civic engagement.  The purpose of the Young Advocates Toolkit: A Guide To Being A Champion for Children is to provide youth with the advocacy skills to prepare them to address societal and community issues, as well as to provide them with the tools needed for self-advocacy and leadership.  This toolkit provides the practical “how to” information necessary for young people to apply resultant skills to real-life situations.

 Click here to download the Toolkit (PDF)


Afterschool Programs Invited to Join International Education Project
The North Carolina Center for International Understanding recently extended an open invitation for afterschool programs to join the NC in the World’s Cultural Correspondents Program. Cultural Correspondents is an innovative way of partnering NC university student studying abroad with K-8 classrooms in North Carolina. Using 21st century communications technologies, university study abroad students are paired with K-8 classrooms to present lessons on their host country, culture, and experiences.

The program curriculum is linked to the Standard Course of Study and supports global competencies for future-ready students.  NC in the World supplies the technology and training to participating afterschool programs.

Visit http://nciwconnections.wikispaces/Cultural+Correspondents to view actual lessons and learn more information about the program.

To sign up or for more information, contact Jessica Mendez, Program Assistant for NC in the World, at jmendez@northcarolina.edu or 919-420-1360 ext. 221.


New Issue of "The Evaluation Exchange"
Harvard Family Research Project is pleased to announce our newest issue of "The Evaluation Exchange" on evaluating advocacy and policy change.

Advocacy that influences or informs public policy has the potential to achieve large-scale results for individuals, families, and communities. Consequently, there is much interest in understanding how to make advocacy and policy change efforts more effective. While previously relegated as "too hard to measure," advocacy evaluation has become a burgeoning field. This 32-page issue of "The Evaluation Exchange" helps to build this new field by defining the developments that are shaping it and showing how enterprising evaluators, nonprofits, and funders are tackling the advocacy evaluation challenge.

Download a copy or read the HTML version at:
http://www.gse.harvard.edu/hfrp/eval/issue34/


Useful Statistics
Action for Children North Carolina presents their latest tool for understanding and overcoming the challenges faced by North Carolina's children and families, the 2007 Data Snapshot of North Carolina’s Children (PDF).

NC CAP has created fact sheets to serve as resources and advocacy tools for afterschool supporters.

• Reduce Risky Behaviors
  (PDF)
• Benefit Minority Youth
  (PDF)
• Help Prevent Crime & Violence
  (PDF)

State Afterschool Profiles
A snapshot of the “state of afterschool" in every state as well as an opportunity to compare afterschool activities across the country. Profiles highlight key data and descriptions of the afterschool landscape, which include a range of out-of-school time programming that can occur before and after school, on weekends, and d