NWREL Partners To Support Quality in

After-School Programs

After-school programs need a strong connection to the learning objectives of the school day in order to increase student achievement. A new $9.6 million project—funded by the U.S. Department of Education—will help ensure that happens in more than 1,600 sites. The Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory is one of seven organizations selected to participate in the nationwide effort, which is designed to strengthen the content, teaching methods, and retention of after-school programs in 21st Century Community Learning Centers.

"The primary goal is to ensure that these programs have access to high-quality, research-based content curriculum so we can help boost academic success for kids," says Eve McDermott, director of NWREL’s Center for School, Family, and Community. Content areas include reading, math, technology, the arts, and homework help.

NWREL’s specific role is to cover three geographic areas of the United States: the Northwest, Southwest, and the Pacific Region. NWREL staff will provide regional training and produce a tool kit that supports reading in after-school programs nationwide. NWREL will also work closely with 21st Century Community Learning Center staff to determine training and technical assistance needs prior to designing regional trainings. By conducting site visits and examining student outcomes, project partners will be able to identify and validate existing programs that are making a positive difference.

The three-year project will be led by the Southwest Educational Development Laboratory (SEDL) in Austin, Texas. In addition to NWREL, other partners include the National Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, and Student Testing (CRESST) at the University of California, Los Angeles; Mid-continent Research for Education and Learning (McREL) in Aurora, Colorado; SERVE in Greensboro, North Carolina; and WGBH Educational Foundation and the Institute for Responsive Education, both in Boston.