The Michigan After-School Partnership was chosen as one of five statewide afterschool networks to host a Statewide Mayoral Summit on Afterschool/Expanded Learning as part of technical and financial assistance from the National League of Cities’ (NLC) Institute for Youth, Education, and Families (YEF Institute), with support from the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation. 

The summit will offer municipal officials an opportunity to connect with state leaders in order to address critical afterschool challenges in communities, showcase promising practices, and jointly determine next steps for making afterschool a priority.  In addition, mayors will be able to share information regarding their afterschool needs and priorities with state-level decision makers and explore ways that cities and towns can utilize federal resources made available through the states under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

The summit, to be held in the spring of 2010, will help highlight the importance of after-school/Expanded Learning Opportunities (ELOs) as a vital strategy for workforce development, entrepreneurial skill-building for youth, and as supports for working families.  It will help promote the role of ELOs to help all children succeed and link these efforts with the state’s economic and workforce development priorities.  The summit will bring state legislators, business leaders, policy makers, the foundation community, advocates, and after-school providers together to develop and create an agenda that supports quality ELOs, particularly for middle and high school youth.

Mary Sutton, Executive Director of the Michigan After-School Partnership, “Michigan has a tremendous opportunity to showcase the strength of cities across the state working in tandem with state legislators to strengthen the foundation upon which youth will be supported in their efforts to succeed academically and grow the skilled and talented workforce necessary to revitalize and diversify our economy.  We are excited to be able to help raise the collective voice in support of these vital programs.”

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The other state networks selected to receive this technical and financial assistance include the Arizona Center for Afterschool Excellence, Georgia Afterschool Investment Council, Iowa Afterschool Alliance, and the South Carolina Afterschool Alliance.

The five selected statewide afterschool networks are supported in part through grants from the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation. Nationally, a total of 38 statewide afterschool networks are funded to shape state policies, build partnerships and assist the development and sustainability of quality afterschool programs.To learn more about these statewide afterschool networks, visit www.statewideafterschoolnetworks.net/