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SAN
FRANCISCO, CA – As California’s economy recovers, Proposition
49 will, over time, guarantee funding for after-school programs
at every elementary and middle school in the state. But where will
after-school programs find qualified adults to tutor, mentor, and
supervise all the children?
A recent statewide forum answered the question with its title: “Meeting
the After-School Workforce Challenge through Older Adults.”
The
session, held on June 24 in San Francisco, was attended by nearly
100 leaders of after-school programs, government agencies, school
systems, faith-based organizations, and other nonprofits –
all interested in tapping into California’s rich resource
of older adults to help meet the needs of children after school.
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, author of Proposition 49, sent a
welcome message supporting the meeting, which was sponsored by Experience
Corps, Civic Ventures, the California AfterSchool Partnership, and
Moss Beach Homes. Those attending came from cities all over the
state – Sacramento to San Diego, Stockton to Santa Cruz, Chico
to Los Angeles.
In his opening address, Marc Freedman, founder and president of
Civic Ventures,
called the match between older adults and children who need after-school
care “a win-win of staggering proportions.” Children
need care; older adults want to provide it.
“People are increasingly seeing retirement as a new chapter,
not just a time for leisure and recreation,” Freedman said.
“What they want is not freedom from work but the freedom to
work – in new ways that are closer to their passions.”
And, surveys show, their passions often involve sharing their experience
with young people. Read quick
facts on older adults and after-school programs. (PDF)
Michael Funk, founder and director of the Sunset Neighborhood Beacon
Center, a program of Moss Beach Homes, cited the dual challenges
of expanding after-school care in a time of budget cuts. “The
solution,” he said, “may be living across the street.”
California has the largest number of residents 65 and older of any
state in the country. Read an analysis of The
Potential of Older Workers for Staffing California’s After-School
Programs. (PDF)
At the forum, Experience Corps released a resource guide, “Experience
After School: Engaging More Adults in After-School Programs,”
to help community organizations develop and enhance meaningful roles
for older adults in after-school programs. Read the introduction,
executive summary, and table
of content, or download the toolkit
(PDF).
Other organizations that played a key role in the conference include
the following:
AARP
AfterSchool
Alliance
California
After School Partnership
California School
Age Consortium
Center for Collaborative
Solutions
Community
Network for Youth Development
David and Lucille
Packard Foundation
Foundation
Consortium
GO SERV
LA’s Best
“We’ve got the right issue, the right time, and the
right people in the room,” concluded John S. Gomperts, CEO
of Experience Corps. “Our challenge and mandate is to make
this collaboration between older adults and after-school programs
a reality.”
The forum was funded by grants from the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation
and the Walter S. Johnson Foundation.
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new adventures in service
Experience Corps is a signature program of Civic Ventures. |
