The YouthLearn team worked with educational leaders from around the country to develop a professional development model for afterschool practitioners. The training was piloted in cities around the country and now, the Afterschool Academies Guidebook for Action is available for download. The Guidebook is designed for leaders and organizations who want to build from the Academies model to create their own professional development that makes a difference: professional development for afterschool education and educators.
The Academies model addresses core principles and practices, as well as strategies to ‘take it home’, whether in the form of staff development, techniques, program design, organizational processes, or other improvements. The Afterschool Academies Guidebook for Action was developed in collaboration with the Center for Afterschool Education, Foundations Inc., Community Network for Youth Development, Citizen Schools, Gary and Eve Moody, and the YouthLearn Initiative at EDC, under a grant from the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation.