MENTOR's cornerstone publication, the "Elements of Effective Practice for Mentoring[TM]", details research-informed and practitioner-approved Standards for creating and sustaining quality youth mentoring programs and consequently, impactful mentoring relationships. This Fourth Edition, released in 2015, reflects the most up-to-date…

Out-of-school time (OST) settings are powerful contexts for youth development when programs and services are intentionally designed. "Youth Development Principles and Practices in Out-of-School Time Settings" increases the capacity of students and professionals to facilitate youths' optimal transition to adulthood through maximizing the…

The need for afterschool programs is clear: Research and practice demonstrate that quality afterschool programs keep youth safe; support working families; and provide critical learning, personal development, arts, and recreational opportunities. New York State alone uses nearly $300 million in local, state, and federal funds for afterschool…

Child Trends produced this Guide to assist funders, administrators, and practitioners in identifying and navigating online resources to find evidence-based programs that may be appropriate for their target populations and communities. The Guide offers an overview of 21 of these resources--11 searchable online databases, 2 online interactive…

Taking risks is fairly common in adolescence. Risky behaviors can be associated with serious, long-term, and--in some cases--life-threatening consequences. This is especially the case when adolescents engage in more than one harmful behavior. The tendency for risky behaviors to co-occur has been well-studied. Yet prevention efforts traditionally…

This glossary of common research and evaluation terms can serve as a quick reference guide for out-of school time practitioners as they face the challenges posed in this new era of program accountability. Subsequent briefs will provide more detailed information on particular types of research and evaluation designs. A list of additional resources…

"Learning Around the Clock: Benefits of Expanded Learning Opportunities for Older Youth" identifies and describes Expanded Learning Opportunities (ELOs) that improve academic performance, college and career preparation, social and emotional development, and health and wellness outcomes for underserved youth. The term "expanded learning…

After-school programs that provide additional learning opportunities for children are seen as potentially powerful opportunities to improve student learning and facilitate other positive youth outcomes. This digest summarizes a research synthesis conducted by the Regional Educational Laboratory at SERVE. The synthesis summarizes research and…

Using this document, school leaders can engage after-school stakeholders in an informed and thoughtful process about developing, implementing and evaluating after-school programs at their schools. As the interest in after-school programs grows, so does the need for reliable information about what works. Although the field is relatively new, a…

This Guide is intended to share the insights of SEDL's National Partnership for Quality Afterschool Learning (the National Partnership) as well as information about both the academic and the organizational and management practices that successful afterschool programs use. The authors have organized these practices into the following four focus…

This skill packet presents training information on extended opportunities for student learning (before- and after-school programs, extended time, or extended school programs). The packet offers implementation suggestions, such as explaining what skills trainers need, how to prepare for delivering the packet, tips for working with adults, how to…

Improving the quality of out-of-school time activities and creating effective learning environments is of keen interest to practitioners, funders and policymakers. Funded by The William Penn Foundation, "Quality Time After School" identifies characteristics of after-school activities that are linked to youth engagement and learning…

What happens to opportunities for learning when some of the structures of schooling are remodelled? What do children and young people do with these new opportunities? Drawing on research into creative projects in a primary and secondary school, and an after-school club for looked-after children, this paper examines a different way of working in…

Harvard Family Research Project's series of "Out-of-School Time Evaluation Snapshots" distills the wealth of information compiled in the Out-of-School Time (OST) Program Evaluation Database into a single report. Each "Snapshot" examines a specific aspect of out-of-school time evaluation. This "Snapshot" describes instruments used by current OST…

The principal and vice-principal of a California elementary school describe the eight critical elements that helped them develop a model expanded-day program at their school: identifying needs; sharing a vision; fostering staff ownership; investing in staff development; creating partnerships; linking learning to state standards; measuring and…