The Partnership’s capacity building and intermediary efforts are divided into the following main activities:

• Meeting
• Collaborating
• Sharing
• Training
• Evaluating

CURRENT ACTIVITIES
We are committed to responding to and anticipating the needs of afterschool providers and Youth throughout our community. Below are just a few of the projects we have underway. See an area of interest to you and/or the Youth you serve? Email Shelley to get involved.

• Day at the Capitol — an opportunity to educate and inform our state legislators about the value of afterschool. We will be inviting afterschool programs from around Louisiana to join us. Scheduled for 6/11/2008. Contact Dara to help with planning.

• Funding Guide — a complete guide to the funding streams (national, state, and private) that are regularly available and accessed by afterschool providers. We’ll also use this guide to plan collaborative and strategic funding strategies for all. The guide will be presented and available at our 3/19 meeting.

• Advancing Youth Development — an exciting professional development opportunity for New Orleans Youth Workers that is being presented in coordination with our partners in Washington DC at the Children and Youth Investment Trust Corporation. The training will be offered through out the year with New Orleans facilitators leading training beginning in 2009. Shelley can provide training dates and application information.

• Parent/Youth Survey — a project for surveying providers’ primary consumers, the  parents and Youth of New Orleans. The surveys will focus on the needs and wishes of  parents and Youth, with Youth taking the lead on the development and implementation of the Youth focused survey. Contact Dara to involve the youth you work with and/or to survey the parents of youth in your program.

• City-wide Services Survey — a project that will capture the work of all local agencies and providers that directly serve Youth in New Orleans. We plan to partner with Forum for Youth Investment as we strive to support all Youth in their quest to be Ready by 21, for college, work, and life. 

Afterschool Partnership Meetings
Afterschool Partnership meetings are held on the third or fourth Wednesday of each month from 10:30 a.m. to noon at the Junior League Headquarters, 4319 Carondelet Street. 2008 meetings are scheduled for the following Wednesdays, DAY at the CAPITOL 6/11, 8/20, 9/17, 10/15, 11/19, and 12/17 at 10:30am (new time for 2008).

The meetings serve as the launching point for all other activities, serving as a forum to discuss, plan, update, share resources, and develop partnership with one another. Any interested community member is welcome to attend these meetings. If you plan on attending for the first time please let us know to expect you by emailing info@gnoafterschool.org.

Strategic Linkages and Collaborations
The Afterschool Partnership works to establish linkages that support the improvement of afterschool programs, as well as expand the broader network of organizations serving youth. Relationships have been formed with other regional, state, and national organizations to further the mission of the Afterschool Partnership. Currently GNOAP is working directly with P/PV in order to establish and fund a citywide afterschool blueprint.

Resource and Information Sharing
The Afterschool Partnership strives to keep afterschool providers informed about the latest updates, best practices, resources, events, and information. Along with an E-Newsletter, the Afterschool Partnership houses a Resource Library with more than 700 holdings on the second floor of Nonprofit Central, 1824 Oretha Castle Haley Boulevard. To learn more about accessing these resources contact us or visit Organization Links to connect with other helpful websites.
Training
The Afterschool Partnership’s trainings, designed to equip afterschool providers with a sound skill base, are usually held in coordination with the monthly partnership meetings. We strive to supply providers with information tied to national best practices. Training topics are linked to Program Quality Elements through which all afterschool providers can begin to utilize a common set of standards to assess, plan, design, and execute strategies for on-going program improvement. The Program Quality Elements are:

• Environment/Climate
• Administration/Organization
• Relationships
• Staffing/Professional Development
• Programming/Activities
• Linkages Between School Day/Afterschool
• Youth Participation/Engagement
• Neighborhood/Community Partnerships
• Program Sustainability/Growth
• Measuring Outcomes/Evaluation

Evaluation
The Afterschool Partnership can serve as an external evaluator for afterschool programs. The staff at the Partnership is experienced in using multiple methodologies to evaluate programs, and assist providers in using that evaluation data to inform future planning and activities. Additional we encourage all programs to conduct self-assessments to assist them in planning for ongoing program improvement. Please contact us to receive the Program Quality Self-Assessment Tool or inquire about external evaluation for your program.