Regional Networks

About the MAP Technical Assistance Collaborative (MTAC). MTAC, the Technical Assistance division of the Massachusetts Afterschool Partnership, emerged out of a growing statewide need for informed, effective technical assistance and professional development in the afterschool and out-of-school time field. In the past year, over 1200 educators attended MTAC trainings and convenings, including staff from afterschool, summer and school-based programs, and school district OST and in-school personnel, from teachers to principals. MAP’s extensive network of thousands of programs across the state and strong relationships with policymakers and elected officials helps MTAC bring the highest-quality professional development to the largest constituency.

Informed, Targeted Technical Assistance for Career Development. All MTAC technical assistance offerings are informed by regular needs assessment, state agency regulations and goals, and local, state and national policy trends. We strive to provide afterschool and OST professionals with training that not only teaches effective tools and strategies, but helps participants make progress towards career and professional goals. All of our professional development offerings meet EEC Training Hour standards and a portion of our courses are pre-approved by MassAEYC for Continuing Education Units (CEU’s). 

Expertise Across Settings, Ages and Subject Areas. MAP has significant experience in coordinating and directly providing technical assistance and professional development to the range of stakeholders who deliver OST services, including schools, community-based organizations, libraries, museums, and institutions of higher learning. MTAC is uniquely positioned to leverage the expertise of hundreds of leaders in the afterschool, education and professional development fields on topics including STEM, Accreditation, Literacy, Curriculum Development and Alignment, Childhood Obesity and Health, Sustainability, Family Engagement and Advocacy.

MTAC Organization and Coordination. MAP’s in-house staff and members of the Technical Assistance Collaborative bring years of experience and skill to every training. Qualifications and credentials of staff include:

• All trainers are degreed, with 10+ years of experience in the OST field

• Certified COA (Council on Accreditation) Endorser On-Staff

• Trained in STEM Curriculum Development and Implementation (Certifications: NASA: Afterschool Universe, SPHERES; WGBH: Design Squad; Museum of Science: Engineering is Elementary)

• Member of Museum of Science Engineering is Elementary curriculum adaptation team to optimize school-based STEM curricula for use in OST programs

• Partner and advisory for national technical assistance organizations.

Our Network

MAP has established statewide and regional networks of afterschool stakeholders to share best practices among regions and communities and to mobilize the afterschool community to achieve its goals.

MAP continues to drive this network to convene hundreds of afterschool supporters annually for its State House Advocacy Day to raise awareness of the importance of creating more opportunities for children and youth. The 2010 Afterschool and Youth Program Advocacy Day brought over 500 supporters to the State House and hosted several key legislators. MAP utilizes its network as an avenue for providing resources for programs and families statewide, including technical assistance, advocacy support and networking opportunities. MAP and its allies work to develop campaigns which create positive social change and support successful models of child and youth development.

MAP conducts regional meetings across the state and we are excited to discuss with you and your colleagues your thoughts on what you would find most helpful. If you're interested in hosting a meeting, playing a leadership role in a regional network, or simply have ideas about how to increase support for afterschool in our state, please feel free to contact Katie Magrane, Executive Director at kmagrane@massafterschool.org or at (617-338-0040).

NASA Summer of Innovation

Summer 2010, MAP announced a summer mini-grant opportunity for programs as part of NASA’s Summer of Innovation program. We encouraged any and all summer programs serving middle school youth within commuting range (MBTA bus, train or commuter rail) to apply for this exciting opportunity. MAP, in collaboration with MIT, the Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation and communities across Massachusetts, implemented the Zero Robotics/SPHERES summer initiative. In this program, middle school students worked with OST program coordinators, MIT mentors and prominent scientists to program and operate “SPHERES” robots that battled on the international space station. At the end of the summer, participants were able to see their SPHERES in space via a live feed and conversation with Space Station astronaut Shannon Walker.

 

Our Advisory Team

MAP's Advisory Team convenes on a regular basis and is composed of diverse stakeholders in the afterschool, out-of-school time, summer and youth program fields including:

The Medical Foundation, BOSTnet (Build the Out-of-School Time Network), NIOST (National Institute on Out-of-School Time), United Way of Massachusetts Bay and Merrimack Valley, Child Care Connection, LASI (Latino After-School Initiative), MetroWest YMCA, For Kids Only Afterschool, Inc., Massachusetts 2020, DPH (Department of Public Health), Get on BASE, Massachusetts Alliance of Boys and Girls Clubs, PEAR: Program in Education and Afterschool Resiliency, PACE (Parents Alliance for Catholic Education), North Shore Community College, WestMOST, Massachusetts Alliance of Teen Pregnancy, Cambridge Agenda for Children, Massachusetts Mentoring Partnership, Black Ministerial Alliance, Boston After School & Beyond, Outdoor Adventures, Suffolk University Juvenile Justice Center, DESE (Department of Elementary and Secondary Education), and the Mayor's Office: City of Boston

Regional Happenings

ASOST Grantee Technical Assistance Seminar Series

The Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (ESE), who administers and oversees the ASOST Quality grant, along with the Massachusetts Afterschool Partnership coordinated two seminars for the 2009 ASOST grant recipients that examined the impact and effectiveness of their after-school and out-of-school time partnerships and the system strategies they were using to align their work.  Below is a brief overview of each training seminar and any handouts or resources that may be useful to attendees:

Session I - Evaluation and Partnership

A requirement of the ASOST grant, as specified in the Request for Proposals (RFP), was to develop an evaluation component for the proposed program or service.  As part of this evaluation, applicants were asked to outline their program’s primary goals and identify quantifiable outcomes or results that would indicate progress towards or achievement of these goals. The April 30^th Technical Assistance Training Seminar:

• Provided after-school and out-of school time partners with an opportunity to examine the quality of their partnerships as well as the accountability standards, benchmarks and tools they are using to measure shared outcomes;

• Provided grantees with a better understanding of how to design and think about the evaluation framework against which they are measuring progress to support program quality goals and student outcomes; and

• Strengthened the skill set of partners in communicating academic, social and emotional goals and outcomes in a more proficient and comprehensive manner through common language.

Seminar I Resources:

A)   MAP-Evaluation and Resource Compendium:

B)   The Harvard Family Research Project - About Our Work in Out of School Time: 

http://www.hfrp.org/out-of-school-time/overview

C)   Handout #1 – 4 - The four circular diagrams (#1 - An Ecological Model for OST Nonprofits;  #2 - A Framework for the Capacities of High Impact OST Nonprofits; #3 - A Learning Cycle for OST Nonprofits and #4 - An Ecological Framework for Building the Capacity of the OST Nonprofit Sector) can be found in this document: "Strengthening Out-Of-School Time Nonprofits: The Role of Foundations in Building Organizational Capacity" by H. Weiss and P.M.D. Little (October 2008).  www.hfrp.org/publications-resources/browse-our-publications/strengthening-out-of-school-time-nonprofits-the-role-of-foundations-in-building-organizational-capacity

D)   Handout #5 - Logic Model Worksheet: http://www.hfrp.org/var/hfrp/storage/fckeditor/File/logic_model_wksht_figure5.pdf

(You can read the entire paper, "Learning From Logic Models in Out-of-School Time" by Harvard Family Research Project (2002) at   www.hfrp.org/publications-resources/browse-our-publications/learning-from-logic-models-in-out-of-school-time .  The handout entitled "Logic Model Worksheet" is from p. 10 of this paper. )

E)    Handout #6 - Measurement Tools for Evaluating OST Programs/An Evaluation Resource: www.hfrp.org/evaluation/publications-resources/measurement-tools-for-evaluating-out-of-school-time-programs-an-evaluation-resource

F)   Handout #7 - Performance Measures in OST Evaluation:

http://www.hfrp.org/evaluation/publications-resources/performance-measures-in-out-of-school-time-evaluation

Session II – Sustainability Strategies

Recognizing the harsh fiscal climate programs are weathering, the May 28^th Technical Assistance Training Seminar:

• Provided after-school and out-of school time partners with an opportunity to work together to examine the quality of and strengthen their strategic sustainability plans, and

• Provided grantees with a better understanding of how to design their sustainability efforts so that they can increase resources, strengthen partnerships and continue to provide vital resources that positively impact our children and youth.

Seminar Resources:

1.    Sustainability Handouts

·         Emerging Typology of Afterschool Funding Diagram:

·         Stakeholder Identification Worksheet:

·         Messaging Worksheet:

·         Ripples of Influence Diagram

2.    Sustainability Plan Template

If you have any questions regarding the ASOST Grantee Technical Assistance Seminars, contact Katie Magrane, MAP’s Executive Director at kmagrane@massafterschool.org or (617)338-0040.