TheConnector

TheCONNECTOR is Youth Community Connections’ (YCC) communication tool for sharing updates and for seeking action from its partners. TheCONNECTOR contains the following highlights:

RECENT NEWS AND EVENTS
10-10-10 March for Minnesota's Youth
Celebrating Lights On Afterschool in Minnesota
Measuring Youth Program Quality: Making Quality Matter
Twin Cities Afterschool Matters Fellowship Program
St. Paul Receives Promise Neighborhood Grant

NEW RESEARCH AND RESOURCES
Online Self Study Course on Youth and School Age Programs
Race and America's Future Virtual Book Club

POLICY AND ADVOCACY
Educate Your Candidates About the Benefits of Afterschool and Summer Learning Opportunities
Policy and Advocacy Committee to Meet November 12, 2010



FUTURE EVENTS
11th Annual Minnesota Mentoring Conference
Why Gender Matters: The Importance of Gender in Early Interventions with At-Risk Youth
Boys Adrift and Girls on the Edge
Blurring the Boundaries of School: How Providence, Rhode Island is Taking A Community Approach to Education
Youth Development "Brown Bag" Webinar Series

Join Us 10-10-10 and March for Minnesota's Youth
On October 10, 2010 Youth Community Connections (YCC) will join the Young Leaders of Children’s Defense Fund-Minnesota, along with other key youth organizations, in a march and rally for Minnesota’s youth.  The event will take place from 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM at the Minnesota State Capitol. Attendees will converge on the state capitol delivering ten specific messages to civic leaders, policy makers, and candidates running in the upcoming state elections.  Garrison Keillor and Marian Wright Edelman will both be speaking. There will be justice music by locally known groups, a celebrity keynote address, short speeches by civic leaders, clergy and youth.  Gubernatorial candidates have been invited and will be given a few minutes to say how they would address the ten focus issues.  The rally will end with a challenge for change to give all Minnesota youth a fair start at life. 

Please consider joining YCC under the out-of-school time tent as we highlight the benefits of out-of-school time learning opportunities for Minnesota’s youth!
                     
For more information contact Matt Steele at 612-627-0157 or matt@youthcommunityconnections.org or Ceil Meade at 612-627-0160 or ceil@youthcommunityconnections.org.

Celebrating Lights On Afterschool in Minnesota
Lighting Up Minnesota
Youth Community Connections (YCC) invites you to plan a Lights On Afterschool celebration in your community.  Lights On Afterschool is a national event to highlight the important role afterschool and summer learning programs play in communities and the lives of young people.  Lights On Afterschool events, like afterschool programs, come in all shapes and sizes, from stadium rallies and town parades to open houses and program tours. 

In an effort to raise awareness about Minnesota’s amazing afterschool and summer programs, YCC would like to see every community in Minnesota host their own Lights On Afterschool celebration!  To encourage your participation, YCC will hold a challenge to see which afterschool program and/or community is the most creative in drawing attention to their programs and the benefits of engaging in quality programs by “lighting up” something within their own community.  Last year New York City lit up the Empire State Building.  This year South Dakota is lighting up Mount Rushmore.   YCC would like to see you light up Paul Bunyan, Babe, the largest ball of string, largest hockey stick, a funny face or image on the side of the water tower, the spoon with a cherry, or maybe the faces of your program participants! 

The Challenge
Plan your Lights On Afterschool event to highlight your afterschool or summer program.  Get creative and light up something within your program or community to help draw attention to your event.

The Contest
YCC will provide a $100 visa gift card to the afterschool program that is most creative in lighting up something within their program or community to draw attention to your event.  Displays will be judged by the creativity of the object/thing lit and the manner in which it is illuminated. 

To enter the contest, you must do the following:
1) Register your Lights On Afterschool event with the Afterschool Alliance by October 20, 2010.

2) Send YCC a picture or short video of your display along with your name, contact information and a brief (250 words or less) summary of your Lights On Afterschool event by October 30, 2010.

All submissions will be reviewed by YCC staff and a winner will be notified by November 10, 2010 and announced in November’s e-newsletter.
Good luck illuminating!   

Measuring Youth Program Quality: Making Quality Matter
Youth Community Connections is hosting a field building conversation Measuring Youth Program Quality: Making Quality Matter on November 10, 2010 from 9:00 - 11:30 a.m. Nicole Yohalem, from the Forum of Youth Investment, will kick off this conversation with providers and stakeholders of out-of-school time opportunities as well as policy and decision leaders. Together we will learn and discuss how program-level measurement leads to quality programming and improved outcomes for children and youth. Participants will learn key indicators of program quality, discuss strategies and tools for assessing and improving program quality, and learn strategies to engage decision and policy makers in quality movement.

The convening will take place at the Neighborhood House in the Gymnasium.  The Neighborhood House is located at 179 Robie Street East, St. Paul, MN 55107.

Admission is free but you must register by Wednesday, November 3, 2010! Contact Ceil Meade, ceil@youthcommunityconnections.org or 612-627-0160, and please provide your name, organization, email and phone number.

Twin Cities Afterschool Matters Fellowship Program
This month marks the end of a year-long fellowship of 11 youth workers from across the Twin Cities.  The Afterschool Matters Fellowship is a collaborative effort of the Robert Bowne Foundation, the National Institute of Out-of-School Time (NIOST), and the National Writing Project to foster reflective inquiry among youth development professionals.  The University of Minnesota Extension Center for Youth Development and the Minnesota Writing Project partner to help build expertise and voice among youth workers by allowing them the time or giving them the space to critically reflect on their own practice and write about what they’ve learned.

Youth Community Connections wishes to congratulate the fellows, their employers, the University of Minnesota Extension Center for Youth Development and the Minnesota Writing Project for their important contributions to the field!  Below is a list of fellows and staff leading the project.

Fellows:

• Robby Callahan Schreiber, Science Museum of Minnesota
• Miigis Gonzalez, Little Earth of United Tribes
• Shannon Siegfried Floe, Project for Pride in Living
• Eric Billiet, THE GARAGE
• Jenny Wright Collins, Minneapolis Beacons Network
• Ahmed Ali, Common Bond Communities
• Angelina Peluso, Brian Coyle Community Center
• Margo Herman, University of Minnesota Extension
• Ge Xiong, Campfire USA Minnesota
• Emily Holder, St. Paul Public Schools
• Maureen Hartman, Hennepin County Libraries

Staff/facilitators:

• Janet Madzey-Akalie, University of Minnesota Extension Center for Youth Development
• Joyce Malwitz, Minnesota Writing Project
• Cece Gran, University of Minnesota Extension Center for Youth Development
• Muriel Thompson, Minnesota Writing Project

St. Paul Receives Promise Neighborhood Grant
Mayor Coleman announced today that Saint Paul is one of 21 communities across the nation selected to receive a Promise Neighborhood grant of $500,000 intended to help communities overcome barriers to ensure every young person receives the support they need to succeed.

The Promise Neighborhood grant will benefit children, youth and families in the Frogtown and Summit University neighborhoods by removing barriers to a quality education both in and out of school.

NEW RESEARCH AND RESOURCES

Check out some of the latest research on after school, youth engagement and quality improvement on YCC’s website under latest research.

Online Self Study Course on Youth and School Age Programs
Social Venture Partners of Minnesota is an engaged philanthropy organization that leverages the money and talents of its members to promote philanthropy and improve the lives of children and youth in Minnesota.  Social Venture Partners provides multi-year funding in the form of grants up to $25,000 per year to be used for general operating support. In its 2010 investment cycle, Social Venture Partners is investing in social entrepreneurs who serve the social, developmental, or educational needs of children and youth ages pre-natal to age eighteen.  For more information about application stipulations and guidelines please visit www.svpmn.org.

Race and America's Future Virtual Book Club
PolicyLink is offering an opportunity to discuss race in America by facilitating a book club that began September 29 and continues every Wednesday through Election Day.  Hosted by Equity Blog, future topics will include:

• October 6 - Color Lines: Growing and Accepting Diveristy
• October 13 - Race and the Economy
• October 20 - Urgent Challenges: Immigration, Incarceration, and Climate Change
• October 27 - New Leadership for Now and 2050

To join in the discussion, click here.

POLICY AND ADVOCACY UPDATES

Educate Your Candidates About the Benefits of Afterschool and Summer Learning Opportunities
Elections are just around the corner.  Now is the perfect time to contact candidates about issues that are important to you!  Youth Community Connections has prepared a one page Policy Brief highlighting how high-quality learning opportunities in the community help shape the future of Minnesota’s youth.  We encourage you to contact your candidates and share your work with them!  We also encourage you to invite them to your program so they can see first hand how the lives of young people are impacted and what it means for their family and the community at large.

Need to know who represents you?  Visit the YCC website to figure out your representative.  You can also visit the Secretary of State’s website to confirm your poling place and find out who is running in your community.

For more information, contact Matt Steele (matt@youthcommunityconnections.org; 612.627.0157) or Laura LaCroix-Dalluhn (laura@youthcommunityconnections; 612.627.0161) for more information.

YCC Policy and Advocacy Committee to Meet November 12, 2010
Save the Date: Youth Community Connections’ Policy and Advocacy Committee will meet on Friday, November 12, 2010 from 9:00 - 11:00 a.m. at the Oxford Community Center (270 N. Lexington Parkway, Saint Paul, MN).  Please join us as we discuss the impact of the elections on afterschool and summer learning, federal policy and decisions affecting out-of-school time.

FUTURE EVENTS

11th Annual Mentoring Conference
The Minnesota Mentoring Conference, to be held on Monday, October 25, is the region's only annual conference focused exclusively on supporting quality mentoring.  This year's theme is "Quality in Action," featuring keynote speaker Andrea Taylor and special guest speakers Larry Wright and Peter Benson.  The Mentoring Partnership of Minnesota (MPM) will again host the conference at the Continuing Education & Conference Center on the University of Minnesota's St. Paul campus. Online registration closes October 18.  Click here to register or see more information on the event. 

Why Gender Matters: The Importance of Gender in Early Interventions with At-Risk Youth
On October 27th, from 8:30 AM to 4:00 PM, Youth Intervention Programs Association will be facilitating a youth development workshop at the Heintz Center Commons in Rochester on how gender differences influence early intervention practices.  The workshop will help you better you understand gender differences, recognize girls and boys at risk, and know how to intervene.  Click here to register.

Boys Adrift and Girls on the Edge
On October 26th, from 8:30 AM to 4:00 PM, Youth Intervention Programs Association will be holding a daylong conference at the University of Minnesota Continuing Education and Conference Center touching on common struggles young men and woman face in today’s society.  Dr. Leonard Sax will discuss in the morning five factors he believes are driving a growing epidemic of unmotivated boys and share strategies which have been effective in re-engaging some of these young men. 

In the afternoon, Dr. Leonard Sax will answer questions dealing with young women’s issues such as why are a growing proportion of girls so anxious? Why are one in eight young American women now taking anti-depressant medication? What do professionals who work with teenage girls need to know in order to intervene effectively?  Click here to register or to see more information about the event.

Blurring the Boundaries of School: How Providence, RI, is Taking a Community Approach to Education
This forum taking place on Friday, October 12 from 12:00 PM to 1:30 PM will showcase the AfterZones Initiative in Providence, RI, that has taken a community-wide approach to providing afterschool opportunities for middle school youth. Designed through a community planning process and unveiled in 2005, AfterZones engage partners throughout the city and bring key community stakeholders together while providing transportation free of charge to allow students access to community resources.  An initial evaluation by Public/Private Ventures on the implementation of the program was released earlier this year and will be presented at the forum. Presenters included Hillary Salmons, Executive Director, Providence After School Alliance; Alix Ogden, Director of Operations, Executive Office of Mayor David Cicilline in Providence, RI; and Laurie Kotloff, Deputy Director of Research, Public/Private Ventures.  For more information on the event, click here.

Youth Development "Brown Bag" Webinar Series
North Dakota State University and University of Minnesota Extension are partnering to offer a series of six webinars 2010 – 2011 on youth-related topics. The first webinar on Wednesday October 13th will give insight into how youth are communicating with one another and using technology.
 
2010-2011 Dates and Topics:
October 13: Sexting:  What every caring adult should know
November 10:  Underage Drinking: Implications for Communities
December 8:  Understanding Youth Development: A guide to program design
January 12:  Being and Ally to LGBTQ Youth
March 9:  The 4-H Study of Positive Youth Development:  What have we learned?
May 11:  Communicating with the “Net Generation”

To register, click here and if you have any questions contact Sharon Query at sharon.query@ndsu.eduor Kari Robideau at robideau@umn.edu.

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Youth Community Connections
200 Oak Street SE, Suite 270B ~ Minneapolis, MN 55455
PH: 612.627.0160
WEB: www.youthcommunityconnections.org