Beyond School - Education Week

After-School Programs Combating 'Mean Girls Syndrome'

2012-02-23T16:47:28Z

A teacher in Minnesota is using an after-school program to try to combat girls' cliquey behavior in middle school, or what she and others call "mean girls syndrome," reports an article this week. Lisa Torbenson, a candidate for Minnesota's teacher...

Obama's Budget Proposal Levels Off 21st CCLC Funds

2012-02-16T16:25:30Z

While President Obama's fiscal 2013 budget proposal calls for an increase of $1.7 billion in funding for the Department Education, the funding for the 21st Century Community Learning Centers program has leveled off to $1.15 billion. As most of you...

Dark Clouds Loom for LAUSD's After-School Programs

2012-02-14T21:30:27Z

The Los Angeles Unified School District's board of education will likely be making some tough decisions on next year's budget today, including whether to eliminate the district's Beyond the Bell Youth Services division that serves 42,000 students in after-school programs....

After-School Programs May Reduce Adolescent Alcohol Use

2012-02-13T17:02:15Z

Voluntary after-school programs on drug and alcohol use could be successful in curbing alcohol use in middle school students, says a recent RAND Corp. study. The study evaluates CHOICE, a voluntary after-school program that instructs middle school students about drugs...

Rising Interest in a Four Day School Week

2012-02-07T18:06:58Z

A rural Missouri school district outside St. Louis reports success in implementing a four day week with longer school days, writes St. Louis Today. According to the article, the district, Montgomery County, is saving $150,000 by moving to a shorter...

Nine Cities Receive Close to $8 Million for After-School

2012-02-03T16:30:14Z

Nine cities will receive a total of $7.8 million in grants to strengthen the after-school programs in their locales, the Wallace Foundation reported this week. The citiesBaltimore, Denver, Ft. Worth, Texas, Grand Rapids, Mich., Jacksonville, Fla., Louisville, Ky., Nashville, Tenn.,...

Q & A With Carol Tang on STEM After School

2012-01-23T16:27:49Z

Carol Tang is leading the charge for the Coalition for After School, an organization based at the University of California, Berkeley, that aims to have more out-of-school programs put science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, or STEM, instruction into their curricula....

'Smarter Summers' Initiative Shows Student Progress

2012-01-19T16:25:17Z

The National Summer Learning Association has just released results of its "Smarter Summers" initiative. The three-year project is supported by a $11.5 grant from the Walmart Foundation, which is used to expand and enhance summer programs in 10 cities, serving...

New Reports Assess How to Sustain Community Schools and Help Teachers

2012-01-18T16:53:51Z

A friend of mine was teaching in a classroom last year in Los Angeles. After noticing some of her students were coming to school hungry (and not eating throughout the day), she started bringing snacks from home to make sure...

Chicago Update: Incentives Provided for Using Time Well

2012-01-12T16:49:54Z

Not only are Chicago schools being rewarded for a longer day; the district is now shelling out $3 million to schools that use the added time in innovative ways. As I wrote on Tuesday, 40 additional schools in Chicago just...

Choosing Alternatives to Dodgeball for After School

2012-01-11T19:55:59Z

The Ohio Afterschool Network and the Ohio health department have teamed up on a guide on how best to incorporate physical activity into after-school programs to curb childhood-obesity rates. These activities should not look like your typical dodgeball game, the...

More Schools in Chicago Lengthen the School Day

2012-01-10T21:00:37Z

Update in Chicago: Forty additional schools just joined an original cadre of 11 schools that have lengthened the school year. Thirty-eight of these schools are charters, the Chicago Tribune reports. All schools are part of the Longer School Day Pioneer...

STEM After-School Story Up Today

2012-01-05T20:39:26Z

I have a story up today that takes a look at the momentum to put STEM curricula into out-of-school programs through the lens of Techbridge, a Bay Area-based program I visited recently. I was able to observe two sites of...

Detroit Keeps Schools Open for Enrichment Over Winter Break

2011-12-30T16:11:15Z

Students in Detroit aren't spending their break shoveling snow and hitting the after-holiday sales this year: they're spending time learning. Their parents are, too. This year, Detroit Public Schools has kept 18 schools open over the winter break to provide...

Chicago and Other Locales Tinker with School Calendar

2011-12-27T15:55:57Z

Chicago high schools will add 36 minutes to the school day district-wide next fall, a move aimed at boosting student performance in core subjects. Union officials held protests at eight of these schools last week. The added time will align...