After-School Bulletin | October 17, 2019
'Lights On' Challenge Accepted:
The Mitten Turns Blue for Afterschool
'Spirit of Detroit' Shines
for Afterschool and so Do Many Other State Landmarks

The Michigan After-School Partnership and Detroit-based provider partners are lighting up Michigan in a big way this year - accepting a challenge posed by the national Afterschool Alliance to turn the lights on major state landmarks and in afterschool's signature blue tones. Among the plans:

The iconic 'Spirit of Detroit' monument in downtown will be the site of a rally and family-festive gathering on 'Lights On Afterschool Day' Thursday, Oct. 24, 2019 from 5:30 pm - 7 pm. The rally is anticipated to attract 200 people, and is the first public event to take place at Spirit Plaza, 2 Woodward Ave., since the venue reopened following renovations. Detroit Deputy Police Chief Todd Bettison, who’s played a significant role in leading the Detroit PAL organization, will be among school and civic leaders addressing the crowd. His remarks are expected to cite the newly released Fight Crime: Invest in Kids annual report, which references the good work of Detroit PAL.

Participating program providers include ACCESS, C2 Pipeline/ Wayne State University, the GOAL Line/ Detroit Community Education Commission, the Detroit Youth Development Resource Center, Detroit PAL, Wayne Metro Community Action Agency, and the United Way for Southeastern Michigan.

Also in "the D," the hip Detroit gathering place downtown known as Campus Martius (‘Latin for ‘field of Mars’) will also have visitors seeing blue come Oct. 24. The first-ever winner of the prestigious, international Urban Land Institute Urban Open Space Award, will have its interior lights lit blue in recognition of afterschool’s impact on children and their families, thanks to support from the Downtown Detroit Partnership.

MASP's Communications Committee spearheaded plans for this and a other "lighting initiatives" in Michigan this year, said Mary Sutton, MASP's Executive Director. "The committee did a fantastic job brainstorming ideas for where communities could shine the light on afterschool," she said. "On top of all the other great activities and events planned by afterschool programs across the state, this year's challenge has created some terrific public displays. We know the lighting will spark conversations, giving us a great opener to talk about the value of afterschool learning."

Elsewhere in Michigan:

  • Flint's historically inspired Arches over downtown's Saginaw Street are turning blue when the city swaps out the installed white light bulbs for blue to show its support for afterschool. Also look at the digital events billboard in the heart of downtown for a special afterschool message!

  • Ypsilanti's unusually shaped but iconic Water Tower on the hill is expected to get - you guessed it - a blue spotlight.

  • Battle Creek Schools are casting a blue light on all the entrances to its nine school buildings where 21st Century Community Center afterschool programs take place.

  • And there's more. Go to the MASP website and read about other "Lights On' happenings now!

Bill White Left Major Afterschool Legacy in Michigan and Nationwide

Upon news of his death this month, philanthropist Bill White was memorialized as a man who never allowed failure to prevent him from taking calculated risks - and many paid off. Among them: His offer of $5 million to seed and support the federal government's 21 st Century Community Learning Centers initiative. His leadership with the C.S. Mott Foundation helped build the fledgling, bipartisan effort to keep children safe after school into a highly regarded national program that now provides high-quality enrichment and academic programming for 1.7 million children each year.

Mary Sutton, Executive Director of the Michigan After-School Partnership (MASP), offered condolences and these words on the life and legacy of this storied afterschool champion.

“The Michigan After-School Partnership (MASP) offers its deepest condolences to the family of philanthropist Bill White. His vision for Afterschool created the national network of Afterschool statewide networks which MASP has been a part of since 2004.

"We are eternally grateful to him and his leadership at the C.S. Mott Foundation for his commitment to supporting the work on the ground and at a systems level to ensure all kids have an opportunity to reach their full potential. We will continue this important work in honor of his legacy and the strong foundation he laid that was so much a part of his values and life work."

Read more about Bill White's contribution to Afterschool in this C.S. Mott Foundation tribute.
Prime Time for Juvenile Crime is Still After School
Fight Crime: Invest in Kids released a new report this week that reinforces the vital role that afterschool programs play in turning the hours after school, and before parents return home from work, into a time of learning and growth for our young people. "From Risk to Opportunity: Afterschool Programs Keep Kids Safe When Juvenile Crime Peaks" is available online, along with Michigan-specific data and program profile. See details and links below.

From Risk to Opportunity: Afterschool Programs Keep Kids Safe When Juvenile Crime Peaks shows that the peak in juvenile crime on school days occurs between 2-6 p.m., provides powerful examples of afterschool programs making a positive difference in young people’s lives, and lifts up law enforcement voices who see the influence programs can have in their community.

The hours immediately after school lets out were first dubbed the “Prime Time for Juvenile Crime” in a report published by Fight Crime: Invest in Kids in 2000. Since the time of that first report, participation in afterschool programs has grown by more than 60 percent, and juvenile crime has decreased by 70 percent. 

We hope this new report and the accompanying website, which includes state-level data for 46 states and examples of afterschool programs in all 50 states, will help more stakeholders recognize the value of afterschool and more young people access quality afterschool opportunities in the future.

Read a Michigan-specific version of the report here.
Access state graphics here .
Frequently Asked Questions appear in this document.
Deadlines for MACC Conference Are Upon Us

The Michigan After-School Collaborative Conference is only a few weeks away, but you need to act fast if you're planning to go.

The deadline for overnight accommodations is today, Oct. 17, 2019. To register for the event , you must act by Oct. 25, 2019. Registration information, the preliminary brochure and venue logistics are available here .
White-Riley-Peterson Policy Fellow Named for Michigan
Bobby Dorigo Jones, a Policy and Outreach Associate for Michigan's Children, has been named a national White Riley Peterson Fellow for afterschool and expanded learning.
 
He joins 15 other fellowship recipients in a 10-month program designed to equip graduates with a real-world understanding of policymaking for afterschool and expanded learning. Upon completion, fellows will put their new found expertise to use by developing and implementing afterschool-related policy projects in their home states.

“I am so proud to welcome 16 more leaders to this outstanding program,” said former U.S. Secretary of Education Richard W. Riley. “It is so important for young people to have access to high-quality academic enrichment opportunities during afterschool hours and in the summer – and we need policy leaders who can make that happen.”

Dorigo Jones will be working closely with Mary Sutton, the Executive Director for the Michigan After-School Partnership, and the MASP Policy Committee to provide service and gain new insights. For his project work, he said he will work to increase collaboration among afterschool advocates towards increased investment into afterschool and summer learning programs. A native of Plymouth near Detroit, he has written a blog about the new opportunity.
The Michigan After-School Partnership is a statewide network developing a shared vision and influencing others to believe in the power of after-school programs to help all children and youth succeed .
Michigan After-School Partnership | Website