Title
Youth Summit Report (B)
This is to present the Full Report and Recommendations on Afterschool Programs for Youth in Gainesville and Alachua County. ** ESTIMATED PRESENTATION 15 MINUTES**
Explanation
Beginning in October of 2017, community youth service providers from across Alachua County came together for a Youth Services Summit initiated by the City of Gainesville Mayor and City Commission and led by the Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs Department. The request of the Mayor and City Commission was to collect information on services available to students in Gainesville during after-school hours, identify gaps where students were underserved and collaborate on recommendations to close these gaps in programming. Attendees of the Youth Summit sessions included a variety of service providers, community leaders and organizational leaders from groups with interests in education, afterschool programming, health, wellness and commerce.
Alachua County is aware that the academic achievement gap in its public schools is the highest in the state of Florida; in a study of racial inequity in Alachua County, the Bureau of Economic and Business Research at the University of Florida reported that 27.7% of Black third-grade students were proficient in reading, compared to 74% of Non-Hispanic White third-graders. This study identified lack of access to afterschool and summer programs as one of the factors leading to this disparity. Afterschool programs can play an important role in improving academic performance when key factors, such as access, consistent participation, program quality and strong partnerships are ensured. Throughout the Summit, a number of barriers to access for underserved student populations were identified and it was the consensus among service providers that with increased resources and support, these barriers to access could be reduced. It is the belief of the Youth Summit participants that improved access to more high-quality afterschool programs for underserved student populations could have significant impacts on levels of students’ academic achievement and be integral to reducing disparities in Alachua County Public Schools and the broader Gainesville community.
The participants of the Youth Services Summit present the Full Report and submit the following Recommendations in Brief: 1) A central organization or committee needs to be established to assume a permanent leadership role for after-school programs and services; 2) The most effective and efficient way to reach more children and provide more after school opportunities is to expand the services already in place at school sites; 3) A common core of services needs to be established and similarly structured programs offered in order to provide equity for all participants; 4) All programs should utilize similarly structured evaluation tools to effectively measure success and develop consistent improvement; 5) Providers all agreed that parents and youth should be surveyed to further identify specific needs for afterschool programming; 6) Collaboration among service providers is the key to additional funding; and 7) Summit attendees believe that the Wallace Foundation Model for Out-of-School Time services can easily be applied in Alachua County and encourage our elected leaders at the city, county and school board to consider adopting this model and hosting a forum in late summer or early fall.
Through the Youth Services Summit collaboration, a Master Directory of Programs has been developed and a Master Roster of Afterschool Providers and Proponents defined. It is recommended that the Youth Services Summit continue to work together in whole or in part to continue to advance the need for more quality afterschool programs and support the Mayor, City Commission, Alachua County Commission and Alachua County School Board and the needs of our youth.
Fiscal Note
None at this time but any follow-up activities will require funding. This should be done in the context of budget discussions.
Recommendation
The City Commission to hear a presentation on the Wallace Foundation Model and Summit Report.