April 5th (or 28th): BE Physically Active 2Day (BEPA 2.0) Register HERE

April 15th: New to OregonASK STEM discussion, 9-10:30am RSVP HERE

April 19th- May 19th Springing into Summer Trainings

April 25th-29th: Afterschool Professionals Appreciation Week

May 13th: New to OregonASK Partnership discussion, 11am-12:30pm RSVP HERE

June 4th: OregonASK Partner Meeting RSVP HERE

OregonASK will be opening our own, inagural Summer Superstar and Afterschool Hero award to recognize all levels of afterschool professionals. Nominations open here until April 22nd for your recommendations on superstar and hero professionals worth extra recognition. Awards will be given in 4 categories with each receiving $50 gift card and free training, plus recognition across our social media and May newsletter. Let us know who is your hero as a; Site Staff, Site Coordinator, Program Director, Champion/Partner Advocate!

And don't forget to join us April 25-29, 2022 in recognizing, appreciating and advocating for the #HeartofAfterschool. Share your own thanks to an Afterschool professional for making a difference in the lives of young people and their families using #HeartofAfterschool. Click here for more information about national appreciation efforts.

Over 20 afterschool professionals from Oregon, including two OregonASK staff attended the NAA22 convention in person in March, joining more than a thousand afterschool professionals from all 50 states. OregonASK's Master Trainer, Rachel Kessler, presented a session on Expanding Youth Voice, Engagement, and Learning Opportunities through the Arts as part of the 3 day extravaganza that included state roll call, dozens of breakout sessions, and keynote's from across the field of afterschool. OregonASK was honored to represent OregonASK while connecting with other networks and providers from around the country.

All who joined in the event were unified through inspiration and passion for the importance of investing in Afterschool and Summer Learning. "NAA was a wonderful opportunity to meet up in person with Afterschool professionals from all over the country. Oregon had its largest attendance from programs we've seen, and we all found great resources to bring back for the coming year", OregonASK Master Trainer, Rachel Kessler.

We are excited to announce that Stephanie Balke has joined OregonASK as the Quality Coordinator! She has a strong passion for fostering quality in afterschool programs and is excited to bring her field experience and education background into the OregonASK quality team that supports professional development initiatives across Oregon. Stephanie earned her degree in Elementary Education in 2013 and has worked with public, non-profit, and for-profit educators; finding her passion to be in afterschool. She participated in Mizzen by Mott pioneer program and was selected as a panel presenter. She was chosen as a 2021 Next Generation of Afterschool Leader by the National Afterschool Association. In her free time, Stephanie, her husband, and new addition to the family, Nathan, enjoy going to the park, doing crafts, and participating in library story time.

We will be highlighting some of our wonderful partners each month to show our appreciation! We are grateful for each and everyone of you and are excited to showcase the awesome work that you do! This month: Centro Cultural.

Centro Cultural is one of a few Latino Nonprofits serving the Washington County Cornelius community. The organization provides wrap-around services to the community such as community wellness, arts and culture, civic engagement, education, and economic empowerment.

Some of the programs they have available for Latinx youth include: Early Escalera, a mentorship program for 9th and 10th grade students to receive fundamental tools and develop skills needed to become successful; The Lego Robotics program which exposes youth to opportunities in STEM fields and provides a platform to solve complex and diverse problems; and MESA (Math, Engineering, Science and Achievement), a partnership with Portland State University to provide students impacted by historic gaps in opportunity to invention interactive STEM activities. Most programs have been virtual over the past years due to COVID-19; however, they have slowly been transitioning to a hybrid/in-person setting as regulations become more relaxed. OregonASK was excited to hear that we have helped Centro Cultural meet and connect with new partners throughout the COVID restrictions during our Annual Conference.

During some of the most difficult days over these past 2 years, Centro Cultural did all they could to support the individuals and families living in their community. In collaboration with Washington County, Centro Cultural was able to offer weekly Saturday events to provide free COVID-19 vaccines and wraparound wellness services, as well as up-to-date information. They also partnered with the Oregon Food Bank and other community organizations to offer a free food mercado- a grocery style food pantry that distributes culturally specific food and supplies to those in need. The free food market is still open to the public and is located at 1216 E. Baseline street in Cornelius, just a block away from Centro Cultural! Visit their website to find out more about this program and other programs that they have available.

We hope all of Oregon's programs, like Centro Cultural, are connecting to opportunities and resources that can help make their work more impactful to their own community!

Later this month, OregonASK will be launching our new training management system that will allow us to share virtual synchronous and asynchronous training with programs across the state! We are very excited to be able to offer more on demand training to meet the needs of the continuously changing field. We will also be kicking off a new series of trainings aimed at Program Leaders. Keep your eyes out for more information coming soon!

BEPA 2.0 is a school-based physical activity ”brain boost” program aligned to state physical education (PE) and health education standards. This training is designed for elementary educators and enrichment program providers. The training consists of two parts:

OregonASK is excited to partner with the Oregon Department of Education and their Oregon Healthy Schools initiative to make this training available to expanded learning partners as well. Use the link below to sign up and choose the time that best fits your schedule.

See our full list of spring training series HERE

Register HERE for any of our 4 free STEM and Entrepreneurship trainings, including a focus on Diverse STEM Pathways and elementary entrepreneurial mindset.

Our virtual STEM & Entrepreneurship series will conclude with 1 hour of Hands-on STEAM Activities and Youth-Lead Inquiry with OregonASK on May 3rd at 10am, 1 hour of Set 1 LEC credit for $12. Register HERE

With a focus on youth engagement, mental health/youth well being, and summer planning, this series will support programs in the intentional design for building a summer space that meets the needs of all Oregon youth.

Registration Opening April 12th for our second Inclusion Base Camp that will take place this summer. Find out dates and descriptions HERE.

And don't miss the FREE training on April 17th for Summer Accommodations for Chronic Conditions that will provide a good introduction into understanding and designing required accommodations for youth in your program, whether health or behavior. Register Here Now!

Join us virtually via zoom from 9-10:30am to learn about OregonASK, our history and our vision, as it relates to STE(A)M. We will share about some of our work as the Oregon Girls Collaborative and how support from STEM Next has allowed us to engage programs around Oregon. We hope you can join us to learn more about opportunities to connect and share in discussion about partnering in this statewide collaborative network. Please RSVP here and reach out if you have specific questions to [email protected].

You can also Sign up HERE for our New to OregonASK Partnership meeting on May 13th to talk more about intentional partnership opportunities. And RSVP HERE to our June Partner Meeting, online June 2nd or in-person June 3rd.

Every person who works with young people is committed to helping them thrive. Whether on athletic field, in an afterschool programs, or in a library, youth-serving professionals and volunteers are making a difference every day. Through the Power of Us Workforce Survey, all youth workers can contribute to a national effort to explore, define, and elevate their profession. The resulting data from the survey can help to inform policy practice and further research to better support the workforce.

Make your voice heard and take the survey today! Please make sure to share the survey with all the staff in your programs as well!

Oregon will be spending $150 million on Summer Learning this year, with the Oregon Association of Education Service Districts (OAESD) overseeing and distributing the $50 million for community activity grants. In collaboration with the Oregon Department of Education, Education Service Districts, and Statewide Community Program Providers, OAESD is coordinating the design and details of the grant and will send out regular updates you can Sign Up for Here. They are anticipated an application out later this month with funds hopefully being ready for distribution as early as May 1st.

Additionally, with $100 million also going through school districts, this is a great opportunity to partner up and expand your summer reach in authentic collaboration with local districts. Fill out this Form to let us know what information you want shared with districts.

Mark your calendars now to apply for an NFL Flag Kit for your elementary, middle and/or high school afterschool program! Kits, include equipment, curricula, nutrition tips, videos and more, with an estimated value of $410. This fast-growing team sport provides fun, inclusive ways for kids to be more active. Applications open April 20th, but make sure to kill it out before May 18th!

Thanks to our partners at Oregon Dairy & Nutrition Council for sharing this great opportunity.

Last month, Olivia Yin-Dolvig, was named to the Moonshot Flight Crew as part of the Million Girls Moonshot. 16 young women from around the country were named thanks to their remarkable work and contribution to STEM learning. OregonASK is proud to highlight this remarkable achievement- Congratulations Olivia!

You can find out more HERE about Olivia and the youth-led organization that she is a Foundation Director for, Youth Venture. This foundation strives to help the BIPOC community by raising funds and spotlighting BIPOC-owned businesses via our podcast.

This Free virtual event will be held in two sessions. Session 1 will be on April 13,2022 from 9:40-10:40 am and Session 2 will be from 11:45 am-12:30 pm. Click here if you plan to attend the CYE event. Feel free to reach out to Ariana Smith at [email protected] if you have any questions or concerns.

Find our previous Monthly Newsletters Online HERE and make sure to visit OregonASK.org for more local resources!