Sample Program

Goals
o Description
Setting goals is a perfect way to ensure that a program is making progress.
o Key Findings
Clearly Defined Goals
Curriculum aligned to promote goals
Emphasis on STEM or homework based
o Example - My program s goals will focus on
Affecting the well-being and development of children and youth by
providing an emotionally and physically safe environment during the outof-school hours
Impacting the academic development and achievement of students by
offering monitored practice time while assisting with homework;
Target tutoring to address gaps in the students' skill development; and
experiential, hands-on application of California State Standards, all in
alignment with the instructional day as well at the STEM fields (Vandell,
2014)
Connecting young people to one another, to caring adults, to the
neighborhood, and to the greater community, by providing opportunities
for leadership, input into program design and implementation, decision
making, and service learning;

Leadership
o Description
A program is only as strong as its leader. A strong leader values the input
of the people around him and ensures the goals of the site are aligned
strongly with education
o Key Findings
Strong mission statement
Emphasis on communication
Independent staff
o Example Move beyond the legal requirements of State and federally funded after
school programs to create a vision of an inclusive educational community
that experiences the multiple benefits of connecting these expanded
opportunities to the instructional day
Ensure that the substance and quality of the After School Program is
balanced, and addresses identified student needs. Provide a safe and
balanced curriculum that allows students to experience academic
enrichment, social maturity, and physical development (Hansen, 2007)
Effective communication systems are critical to effective alignment
between the school day and expanded learning. Examine how data is used

to determine program effectiveness and monitor student achievement

within the expanded educational community
Maximize the use of personnel and fiscal resources. Explore the mutual
benefits of blending funding sources and investigate alternative staffing
patterns. Ensure sustainability of the program through documented school
plans (Huang, 2011).

Staff
o Description
A leader is only as strong as the staff working under him/her. High quality
programs recruit staff from colleges and universities that have a focus in
after school learning
o Key Findings
High education and highly trained
Experience in the field
High retention rate
o Examples
My programs Site Coordinators must be dedicated, certified teachers
who are enthusiastic, creative and problem solvers. It is their responsibility
to uphold the goals and objectives of the site and to operate within the
parameters. They are responsible for the scheduling of activities and staff
at each school, supervision of staff and students, managing student records
and data required for program evaluation.
All staff responsible for the direct supervision of youth must be 18 years
of age or older and have at a minimum a High School Diploma or G.E.D
but some amount of college is preferred. It is preferred that all staff has
some experience in school age related fields.
The staff will read and have access to the policies and procedures of our
program. Before being left alone with youth, all staff and volunteers will
complete the required orientation training and have completed a
background check. Direct physical supervision of staff and volunteers,
who work alone with youth, will be provided until the background check
has been completed and cleared.

Program
o Description
High quality programs offer students a variety of activities each day. They
also offer homework help and reading time as well as other programs that
improve academic prowess
o Key Findings
Research based practices
Emphasis on learning
Engaging students

o Examples
Successful after-school programs incorporate many things that promote
the development and learning of children. They allow children to develop
social skills. In the article Parental Ideologies and Children's After-School
Activities, "Whereas respect for others was an important characteristic that
many parents wanted to instill in their children, many also said that they
thought it was very important for their children to learn other social skills
such as getting along with others and being exposed to children outside the
family and their immediate circle of friends," (Dunn, 2003)
To ensure that the programs are being engaging and emphasizing learning,
my program will work in tandem with local school in order to have them
actively participate in the shaping of the activities that will reflect the
goals of their curriculum
Our program activities will consist of both active and passive activities.
Students will have a choice of what type of activity they will participate in
at different times throughout the day but will be required to do at least one
of each. Our Active programs will emphasize physical well being while
the Passive programs will focus on improving students academic success
in the STEM fields

Evaluation
o Description
Quality programs are contently evaluating and reevaluating themselves to
measure their performance. Evaluations should be both internal and
external
o Key Findings
Be externally evaluated
Practice internal evaluation
Allow for internal constructive criticism
o Examples
Traditionally, evaluations of afterschool programs have focused on
numbers, like improving test scores or lowering crime statistics. While
these are critical, it's not so easy to measure the other essential parts of a
good program: developing relationships between youth and adults,
fostering the moral and ethical development of children, even allowing
them time to play (Larson, 2000).
These affective components will be in the foreground as I set my
programs goals, structure, and finally assess its success. All evaluations,
whether conducted by program staff or outside evaluators, must
incorporate multiple measures of success.
Feedback from the community is one important tool in measuring the
program's efficacy. We will solicit feedback through surveys and
meetings, collecting quantitative data that will help us determine the
program's strengths and the areas where change is needed.