GET SMART WITH ART:

The Bay Area Writing Project / de Young Museum
SUMMER MINI-INSTITUTE
July 29-August 8, 2008
9:00 A.M. to 3:00 P.M.
Located at the de Young Museum, Golden Gate Park

This mini-institute brings together the resources of the de Young Museum instructors Hector Lee, Meredith Pike-Baky, Charlene Kalagian and UC Berkeley’s Bay Area Writing Project to provide (K-8) teachers with an opportunity to develop confidence in working with the museum’s art collections as a teaching and learning resource and expand your understanding of the multiple roles writing can play in students’ learning.  In collaborative sessions, designed to encourage the free exchange of ideas and questions, you will work with museum staff and BAWP teacher consultants to:

• Engage in Visual Teaching Strategies as a foundational experience to demonstrate the multiplicity of meanings generated by the museum experience
• Interact with museum curators to gain deeper understanding of the collections
• Shadow conservators for a behind-the-scenes look at how collections are cared for, restored, documented and displayed
• Further observation skills through guidance by a master artist
• Use writing as a tool for analysis, reflection and learning

You will have the opportunity to develop thematic lessons directly related to your students’ grade level and the museum’s collections.  BAWP teacher consultants and the museum’s education staff will serve as coaches to support your professional growth.

As a bonus, BAWP and the museum will offer a follow up Saturday during the school year, and the museum will arrange school visits and other additional support for you!

Click here to register! 

Kids First! group says it has signatures needed for November ballot measure

Kelly Rayburn
Oakland Tribune STAFF WRITER

Article Created: 06/09/2008 03:58:12 PM PDT

By Kelly Rayburn

OAKLAND — A group called the Oakland Kids First! Coalition turned in nearly 45,000 signatures to the city clerk’s office Monday, aiming to place a ballot measure before voters in November to dramatically increase youth services.

Measure proponents say it would “protect and expand” the services initially provided under Measure K, approved in 1996. But the proposed 2008 measure, known as Kids First! Two, has drawn opposition from Mayor Ron Dellums and some members of the City Council.

The coalition needs about 18,900 valid signatures to force a ballot question. And while they could face a tough fight come November, about 75 teenagers and youth program leaders celebrated what they’d already accomplished.

Kim Miyoshi, executive director of Oakland Kids First, just one of the nonprofit organizations that falls under the umbrella of the Oakland Kids First! Coalition, said the campaign was “like the little engine that could.”

“All the challenges seemed somewhat insurmountable,” she said. “It seemed like the City Council wasn’t for it, … and yet every time we hit a roadblock almost a miracle would happen and more people would get on board.”

Measure K mandates that 2.5 percent of the city’s unrestricted general fund revenue be set aside in the Oakland Children’s Fund for youth programs. The new initiative would nearly double funding for the Children’s Fund starting in 2011 by mandating that 2.5 percent of all city revenue go toward the fund. The city’s yearly general fund is about $475 million while its total revenue is close to $1 billion.Groups that receive funding include Oakland Kids First, the East Bay Asian Youth Center, Girls Inc. of Alameda County, Youth ALIVE! and Youth UpRising.

Mayor Ron Dellums said in a statement the “proposal pursues a laudable objective that I support.” But he continued that, “by increasing expenditures and not increasing revenues, this measure would reduce budgets for other crucial city services including many services that support Oakland kids.” The mayor said he remained committed to working with outside government and private funding sources to benefit nonprofit organizations such as those funded by Measure K.

City Councilmember Jean Quan (Montclair-Laurel), the head of the council’s finance committee, reiterated her opposition to the measure. She noted that the council extended the original set-aside provided by Measure K through 2021, but said increasing that percentage further could mean deep cuts to other city services, such as parks and recreation and senior programs.

Initiative proponents said youth programs are more important than ever, with crime rates high.

“I think in neighborhoods all across the city that residents and families want Oakland to be a place where they can raise their children in a safe and nurturing environment,” said David Kakishiba, executive director of the East Bay Asian Youth Center. “And it think the Kids First! initiative would go a long way to making that happen.”

Reach Kelly Rayburn at 510-208-6435 or krayburn@bayareanewsgroup.com.

Hello OCASA members!

Laney College is applying for an Afterschool Career Advancement Academy grant and has asked for OCASA to participate.

Please send me (lizj@urbanstrategies.org) job descriptions for positions at your organization. In order to come up with a curriculum that prepares students for careers in afterschool, Laney College faculty would like to review job descriptions for current posts (filled and unfilled) at afterschool programs in Oakland. Any job descriptions that you have on file for positions within your organization (filled positions, unfilled positions, and potential positions) would be MOST helpful to this effort.

David Kakishiba and Geri Murphy will sit on the bridge program’s steering committee to represent OCASA. Edward and myself have been attending the grant application preparation meetings.

Thanks!

Liz Johnson, MS

Program Associate

Urban Strategies Council

672 Thirteenth Street

Oakland, CA 94612

(510) 893-1377

lizj@urbanstrategies.org

More information….

The Afterschool Career Advancement Academy would include the following 4 elements:

1. The creation of a bridge semester in youth development or education. A bridge program provides contextualized core curriculum to students to prepare them to begin taking college level courses in a particular subject.
2. A strong link to afterschool employment that’s connected to a career pathway (e.g. students placed in afternoon work positions that they receive college credit for while they take courses that further prepare them for the field).
3. Strong links to further courses at Laney and further study at area colleges and universities.
4. Test preparation courses to allow students to prepare adequately for any certification exams necessary.
5. Wrap around services for students.

Other participants include Rebecca Goldberg from CalSAC, Linda Collins from the Career Ladders Project, Dean Linda Sanford from Laney and William Hansen from Laney.

They would like OCASA’s help:

1. Envisioning the proposed program.
2. Providing employment, volunteer and internship opportunities to students in the program.

For more information, please contact me or see the description below of the proposed program from the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office:

The intent of this RFA specification is to fund projects that focus on adapting effective components of the Career Advancement Academies (CAAs) model at five sites, focusing on linking after-school employment to longer career pathways and building needed connections between local employers, community colleges and after-school providers.

These sites will build on or link community colleges to established partnerships with employers, local workforce investment boards, social service agencies and community organizations for outreach, recruitment and support services. In addition, the sites will work closely with their local County Offices of Education and after-school providers in program development and implementation, as well as training and job placement. Colleges will partner with local California State University campuses and employers in developing the ongoing pathway programs.

Colleges receiving these grants will establish “bridge” programs addressing foundational reading, writing and math skills contextualized and linked to regionally identified career pathways. As students transition from the bridge program to subsequent career training, eligible students will be prepared for and placed in part-time after-school employment, providing them invaluable, hands-on, paid work-experience. The after-school employment component will be integrated in college programming as work-experience or service-learning. At each site, attention will be paid to the subsequent transition of students to the regionally identified career pathways available. Students may also elect to transition to other certificate or degree programs at a college.

The primary partners for these grants are a community college and secondary schools, participating employers, and County Offices of Education, in conjunction with project related service providers. Funded projects must have evidence of a partnership with key stakeholders. In addition, local CSU’s, ROCPs, middle schools, public employers, business/industry and labor are suitable partners. The partnership must include an advisory committee made up of key stakeholders who meet and affirm that the activities are relevant to the region’s employer needs, link to a career opportunity, the project is meeting its goals and objectives and provide feedback on execution and effectiveness of the project activities.

Applicants must demonstrate a strong capacity to implement highly visible, high impact projects that can provide a model for career preparation for post secondary students and career exploration and awareness for secondary students.

Visit http://www.yearup.org/ for information about this Paid
Internship/Training Program for Youth.

Year Up is a one-year, intensive training program that provides urban young
adults 18-24, with a unique combination of technical and professional
skills, college credits, an educational stipend and corporate
apprenticeship.

Our success is our graduates — enabling them to move on to full-time
employment and higher education. Year Up is about providing opportunities
for urban young adults to demonstrate their true potential.

We have achieved excellent results to date:
. 100% placement of qualified students into apprenticeships . 83% student
retention . 90% of apprentices meet or exceed apprenticeship partner
expectations . 87% of graduates placed in full or part-time positions within
4 months of graduation . $15/hr average wage at placement

Provide Fortune 100 companies like Merrill Lynch, American Express, Lehman
Brothers and Bank of America with Information Technology entry-level talent.
Throughout the course of one year, our students earn up to 16 college
credits from Pace University learn technical and professional skills and are
placed in paid internships.  Year Up is currently recruiting student for
our next
class of young professionals. We are looking for High School graduates or
GED recipients ages 18-24 who may not know what to do next, attend college
or work full-time.

Description

Intensive & Trainer Tool Kit for Directors

Adult Supervision Skills!
Using a play-to-learn approach, participants will explore and engage with adult learning principles from the adult supervision course. Learn effective ways to implement active-learning techniques with designed training modules that are engaging and competency-based.

Applicable for either early childhood or school-age care directors, participants will explore their combined experience and knowledge in creating relevant and enjoyable learning environments for staff working in programs serving children and youth. Each participant will receive a copy of the Adult Supervision Notebook, a complete competency-based curricula designed for adult supervision or mentoring roles. Sample topics include:

• Mentoring & Leadership
• Finding Solutions
• Teambuilding & Communication
• Retention & Motivation Techniques
• Change Process

To download the flyer, click here

To register, click here  

Sponsored by California School-Age Consortium and Child Development Training Consortium.

Contact

Rebecca Goldberg

415-957-9789

rgoldberg@calsac.org

(From the CalSAC May Newsletter)

The Mr. Holland’s Opus Special Projects Program provides musical instruments and instrument repairs to existing K-12 school music programs that have no other source of financing to purchase additional musical instruments and materials.

Eligibility: After-school music programs that are at least three years old or have a music-related umbrella organization that is at least three years. Maximum Award: $8,000. Deadline: August 1, 2008.

For more information, click here.

(From the CalSAC May Newsletter)

The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation give grants to organizations to start or expand Nature of Learning programs in their communities. Grants support start-up expenses associated with new programs and offer continued support to existing Nature of Learning programs.

Nature of Learning is the National Wildlife Refuge System’s community-based environmental education initiative that seeks to use National Wildlife Refuges as outdoor classrooms to promote greater understanding of local conservation issues; encourage interdisciplinary approaches to learning that enhance student academic achievement; use field experiences and student-led stewardship projects to connect classroom lessons to real world issues; and, partner local schools, community groups, natural resource professionals and local businesses. Maximum Award: varies.

Eligibility: Programs involving a partnership among a local school(s), community group (e.g., Refuge Support Group), and National Wildlife Refuge.

For more information, click here.

Our Path to Peace Toolkit

The Youth Development Peer Network, a collaborative of Bay Area youth workers (those who work with or on behalf of youth) is excited to announce several upcoming, co-sponsored events in San Francisco and Oakland. Don’t miss out on these great opportunities to network with other youth workers and learn a few new skills!

For more information about “We Are Youth Workers” (June 11, San Francisco), click here.

For more information about “A Day of Serious Fun” (June 13, Oakland), click here.

For more information about “Financial Literacy for Youth Workers” (June 19, San Francisco), click here.

For more information about “Our Path to Peace” (an online Toolkit, various dates & times), click here.

(From CalSAC’s May Newsletter)

The California Department of Education reports that technical problems had delayed the announcement of 21st CCLC Cohort 5 awardees until the close of business Friday, May 23.  The awardees were announced briefly and then removed from the website due to a glitch in the approval process. The results have now been re-posted along with a recently updated frequently asked questions document.

For more information on the 21st CCLC program, including a recently updated frequently asked questions document, click here.

To find out about recently released funding including 21st CCLC awardees, click here.

(From the  CalSAC May Newsletter)

Senate Bill 1674 (SB 1674 – Torlakson), was released from the Suspense File and passed the Senate Appropriations Committee. The provision within the bill as it was originally written to establish a minimum grant award for small schools was deleted due to perceived cost pressures, in order to move the other provisions forward.

If passed, the bill will continue to establish the California After-School Teacher Pipeline Pilot Program, ensure that sub-contractors/ sub-providers of ASES and 21st CCLC programs receive a reasonable grant allotment for administrative functions, and allow ASES programs to operate on weekends with students who attend the after school program on regular school days (and without counting weekend activities toward program attendance).  This bill should go to a full floor vote this week.

For more information about this bill, click here.