New! OST Expansion Study Report

We are full with great appreciation and high expectations and excited to share the OST Expansion Study Report (Full Report) and accompanying Summary Report. 
 
For almost 25 years, the Cambridge Agenda for Children OST has been committed to equitable access to OST programs for Cambridge families and supporting OST leaders and educators to deliver high quality programming. We will continue to provide leadership in the next phase of the OST Expansion work and hope that you will join us in leadership in the months and years ahead as we implement these important recommendations and our ideal future state. 
 
Our collective efforts will allow us to eventually provide every young person and family in Cambridge with the OST opportunities they both need and deserve.
 
Thank you,
Khari and Susan
Read more about the Need for OST Expansion and the Critical Role OST plays in Child Development and review slides summarizing each OST Expansion Study Recommendation in Amharic (አማርኛ), Haitian Creole (Kreyòl),  and Spanish (español). 

Report on the Impact of OST Staff Engagement in Professional Opportunities​

The Cambridge Agenda for Children Out-of-School Time (AFCOST) is pleased to share our most recent Impact Evaluation Report.
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We hope that this report will spark deeper investment in professional growth opportunities for the dedicated staff who care for and nurture the wellbeing of our children and young people. The findings from this impact evaluation demonstrate that investing in professional growth and engagement opportunities for the Cambridge Out-of-School Time (OST) workforce has a profound and lasting impact on both staff and the youth they serve.

The data reveals that OST staff who engage deeply in AFCOST's professional development opportunities experience: increased knowledge and enhanced their skills, strengthened community connections, and improved confidence in their roles.
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These benefits not only foster the professional growth of staff but also translate into high quality learning experiences for children and youth, contributing to a more vibrant, supportive, and effective OST ecosystem.
​We deeply appreciate the OST staff who provided insightful feedback and shared their time, insights and perspectives through feedback forms, surveys, interviews, and focus groups. Link to Full Report.  Link to Executive Summary

Report on the Liberation of Leadership Experience

Report Suggests that Achieving Transformation at the Organizational and Systems Level Requires More Sustained, Intentional Work
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​Between January 2021 and June 2022, thirty out-of-school (OST) time leaders participated in two cohorts of Liberation of Leadership, a new learning experience offered by the Cambridge Agenda for Children Out of School Time (AFCOST). 
​The qualitative data show that Liberation of Leadership participants deepened their leadership awareness and skills and experienced transformation at the individual and interpersonal level. 
Follow the links to read the Executive Summary or to read the Full Report.
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A Summary Report comparing Cambridge OST Staff
Engagement and Participation FY '19 and '20
​By Mercedes Soto, Impact Evaluation Advisor, 
Agenda for Children OST
March 30, 2021

As the 2020-21 year comes to a close, the Agenda for Children OST, we will spend part of the summer reviewing the 2020-21 participation data. Although this year was hard, we as a community continued to demonstrate commitment to our professional development.
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Be on the look out, towards the end of the summer, for your organization's professional development summary reports and individual transcripts. 

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In the meantime, here is a link to an aggregate report comparing Staff Engagement and Participation in AFCOST Activities in 2018-2019 and 2019-2020.  
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A Report of Cambridge OST
Organization Program Profiles, Summer 2020 
​By Mercedes Soto, Impact Evaluation Advisor, 
Agenda for Children OST
July 6, 2020

​A summary report of survey organizational program profile  data collected from Out-of-School Time (OST) Directors from 46 Programs in Cambridge.    
Family Engagement Storytelling Project Stands at the 'Intersection of Media and Educational Justice'
Authors: Global Family Research Project Staff
May 19 2020 

An article about how the Cambridge Agenda for Children’s Stories of Family Partnership offers a new approach to building capacity within the out-of-school-time community.
Report of OST Director Engagement and Experience
​By Mercedes Soto,
​Impact Evaluation Advisor, Agenda for Children OST
February 26, 2020

A report of findings from Out-of-School Time (OST) 2018-19 Director Level Surveys, Interviews and Participation Data. OST Directors are a key lever in achieving positive child and youth outcomes.  To what extent does participation in AFCOST activities increase the capacity of directors to lead high quality OST programs?
Engaging Cambridge Middle School Youth in Out-of-School Time Opportunities
​By Ramon Gonzalez, Give a Summer, Annie Leavitt, Middle School Network, Kelly Royds and Khari Milner, Agenda for Children OST
June 25, 2018

With data collected in two surveys taken by Cambridge Middle School youth on participation and interest in summer and after school programs, this report examines why there is still a percentage of students who are not participating in either type of program and proposes strategies to increase engagement in youth who miss out on these opportunities.
Framing Evaluation: Towards a Theory of Change based Evaluation Framework for Cambridge Agenda for Children Out-of-School Time
By Kelly Royds, Impact and Evaluation Advisor
February 28, 2018

​This report presents a comprehensive analysis of Agenda for Children Out-of-School Time (AFCOST) monitoring and evaluation needs and introduces a monitoring & evaluation framework for AFCOST activities, including an updated Theory of Change & logic models for core activities.
2018 Summer Resource Guide for 6th, 7th and 8th Graders
By Annie Leavitt, Middle School Network Coordinator
March, 2018

The Middle School Network produces a biyearly resource guide to help teachers, parents and OST providers find and connect young people to current OST opportunities. If you are interested to see the archive of previous resource guides, click here.
Back to the future: Envisioning Cambridge Public Schools with the OST Community of Cambridge
April 19,2017

On March 29, 2017 Agenda for Children Out-of-School Time Initiative, in partnership with the Cambridge Nonprofit Coalition, brought together 45 professionals representing 34 child and youth work organizations and initiatives across the city to support the new Superintendent, Dr. Kenneth Salim, envision the future of Cambridge Public Schools (CPS)

Selected Publications from the OST Field

OST Research

  • Design Principles for Community-based Settings:  Putting the Science of Learning and Development Into Action  
    The Forum for Youth Investment in partnership with Learning Policy Institute and Turnaround for Children and in association with the SoLD Alliance present a new playbook, which includes a set of design principles that were developed by a group of educators, practitioners, scientists, and parents.  It builds on the knowledge we have today and the contributions of many in the OST field to nurture innovations, new models, and new enabling policies. 
  • America After 3PM 2020 Report
    The Afterschool Alliance's 4th edition of America After 3PM provides a detailed account of children in the afterschool hours, identifying: trends of participation in, and unmet demand for, afterschool programs; the experiences and opportunities programs afford; and which children and families are missing out, and why.  ​
  • SEL+OST=Perfect Together: A Conference Report - A conference report on social and emotional learning hosted by the Collaborative for Academic, Social and Emotional Learning, sponsored by The Wallace Foundation and America’s Promise Alliance in conjunction with the SEL Exchange.
  • Afterschool Alliance Issue Briefs - free short research summaries on OST
  • Afterschool Matters - free publication from NIOST, issues available online
  • Harvard Family Research Project - free searchable research database
  • Global Family Research Project - A national platform for forward-thinking perspectives on family and community engagement research, practices, policies, & strategies
  •  Youth Development Insight blog - blog by University of Minnesota - Extension Center for Youth Development

Resources & Curriculum for OST Programs

Cambridge Agenda for Children out-of-school time

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