What's New at UAN

Dear Afterschool/Community School Colleagues,

The Utah Afterschool Network in partnership with KIDS COUNT Project of Voices for Utah Children are pleased to announce the release of  Utah’s Expanded Learning Landscape: Supporting Youth Success;  a report highlighting current data on expanded learning opportunities and student demographics in the eleven highest populated counties in Utah.

In addition, this report provides policy recommendations in support of a comprehensive data collection process for communicating the positive impact of expanded learning opportunities on youth outcomes statewide.  For specific county data click here. We hope that you will find the report to provide meaningful information about the comprehensive current landscape of afterschool in targeted areas of Utah.

Happy Spring!

Anneli Segura

Executive Director, UAN

Click here to view the Data Report

Note on Summer Learning

Potential Cumulative Impact of Summer Learning Loss on Low-Income Students Not Participating in Effective Summer Learning Programs

For more information on the summer learning gap click here

To succeed in school and life, children and young adults need ongoing opportunities to learn and practice essential skills. This is especially true during the summer months.  Many adults have an image of summer as a carefree time when "kids can be kids,” and take for granted the prospect of enriching experiences such as summer camps, time with family, and trips to museums, parks, and libraries.  Unfortunately, some youth face anything but idyllic summer months. When the school doors close, many children struggle to access educational opportunities, as well as basic needs such as healthy meals and adequate adult supervision. 

Retreived from www.summerlearning.org

Research has shown that students' skills and knowledge often deteriorate during the summer months, with low-income students facing the largest losses. Instruction during the summer has the potential to stop these losses and propel students toward higher achievement.  

Retreived from www.statewideafterschoolnetworks.net

Summer Learning Opportunities

Wallace Foundation on Summer Learning Guide

This discussion guide, created by Wallace Foundation, examines the role summer learning programs play in helping support students outside school hours and throughout the calendar year. To accomplish this goal, the guide provides the following:

• Contemporary research on the major issues facing students regarding summer learning;
• Elements of effective summer learning programs;
• State-level actions to address issues in summer learning; and
• Policy exercises state boards of education can use to discuss summer learning policy in a structured and meaningful way

Summer Learning Guide

National Summer Learning Association

The National Summer Learning Association provides services to communities, school districts, and programs to support your efforts to make quality summer learning programs accessible to youth. Whether you're just starting out or building capacity, whether you're in need of strategic guidance, program quality assessment, or training resources, we're prepared to help you build a sustainable solution

View their website

Making Summer Count- How Summer Programs Can Boost Children's Learning

This summary by RAND Corporation is a review of the literature on summer learning loss and summer learning programs, coupled with data from ongoing programs offered by districts and private providers across the United States, demonstrating the potential of summer programs to improve achievement as well as the challenges in creating and maintaining such programs.

View their website

Statewide Afterschool Networks

This website offers key information, research, publications, and strategies to support summer learning.  Also available, is specific information on successful strategies that Statewide Networks across the country have used to support summer learning.

Visit their website

UAN Website-Summer Learning Resources

Check our website for additional and updated resources.

Visit their website

Participate in STEM Research

The MOST-Science Study: Mapping Out-of-School-Time Science

MOST-Science is a nationwide study mapping study, working to build a broad, comprehensive picture of the extensive activity in out-of-school-time (OST) science, technology and engineering programming for young people. The study is funded by the NSF and the Noyce Foundation. Our research team, Ethnography & Evaluation Research, is based at the University of Colorado, Boulder and also collaborates with Robert Tai and his research team at the University of Virginia. 

We wish to understand how these differences in program design are related to youth outcomes such as STEM learning, attitudes and interest, and their later career and educational choices. To answer these questions, we are gathering data through documents, interviews, and the online MOST-Science Questionnaire. Please visit their website to take the MOST-Science Questionnaire!  

In addition, you have a chance to win a $50 gift certificate to Staples or DonorsChoose.org (your choice). One winner's name will be drawn randomly from every group of 20 responses in order of completion, and the winner will be notified by e-mail.