High quality after-school programs provide numerous social, family, and community benefits. In addition to helping parents balance work and life responsibilities, these programs offer prime opportunities to enhance learning--particularly for struggling students. After-school programs also help to promote equity among students by providing…

This document comprises three issues of a newsletter highlighting the MOST Initiative (Making the Most of Out-of-School Time) published by the National Institute on Out-of-School Time. Appearing regularly in the newsletter are updates of after-school programs in Chicago, Seattle, and Boston. The January, 2000 issue features an interview with…

This report summarizes key findings from a 2000 nationwide poll regarding support and demand for after-school programs. Participating in the poll were 800 adults over age 18 who are registered to vote. The findings included the following: (1) 92 percent of respondents agreed that there should be an organized activity/place for children and teens…

Nearly two-thirds of U.S. families are now headed by two working parents or a single working parent. Accompanying the rise in working parents is a growing demand for high-quality supervised care and enrichment activities for children and youth during out-of-school hours. To make sound investment decisions, policymakers, program providers and…

Schools and communities are finding new ways to provide students with quality learning opportunities outside the traditional school day. Statistics reveal that as many as 5 million children may be left alone at home each week while parents work. Before- and afterschool programs, summer learning activities, and mentoring and tutoring efforts are…

Noting the renewed attention given to community efforts supporting after-school activities to promote social competence in its youth, this book examines the concepts of play and rites of passage for youth. The book also discusses the contributions of various types of activities on youth social competency, presents a variety of perspectives for…

In response to growing public understanding of the importance of quality care and activities during out-of-school hours for children's healthy development, a variety of out-of-school initiatives are being implemented across the country. This guide is designed to provide policy makers, program leaders, system-building advocates, and others with…

This document is comprised of two papers providing resources for after-school programs and additional information available from the Harvard Family Research Project (HFRP). The first paper, "Organizations in Out-of-School Time: An Introduction," reviews the national, state, and local organizations active in the field of out-of-school time, grouped…

This study examined the effect of a specialized after-school program, the Services to Youth Program (STYP), as one method of preventing the reoccurrence of criminal activity among delinquent youth. Seven African American youth who actively participated in the structured, curriculum-based after-school program were compared with a matched group of…

Although afterschool programs for children have been operating for many years in some communities, the afterschool movement, the great national awakening to the opportunity afterschool offers, is just a few years old. As public demand for afterschool has grown, so also has the demand for accountability. That is particularly true in programs…

When children fall behind in a content area or areas, there may not be sufficient time in the school day to offer the remedial instruction necessary to get them up to speed. One potential solution for making up this deficit is out-of-school time, or OST, programs. The "supplemental services" provision of the No Child Left Behind Act requires that…

Five-to nine-year-olds engage in an after school program designed to develop their cognitive skills. (AJ)

By altering the school schedule, one English school has made room at the end of the day for a special activities period during which eleven to fourteen year olds participate in extracurricular activities, private study, or special elective courses. Pupils' reactions to the scheme are noted. (SJL)

An art teacher at an inner city elementary school has found that his young students are eager to join his after-school art club and to tackle the difficult processes of etching and printmaking. This article describes the program's printmaking procedures and facilities. (SJL)