Ready News: January 11, 2019

Aspen Institute National Commission on Social, Emotional, and Academic Development Final Report

Livestream Event
Tuesday, January 15, 2019
9:00 am – 12:00 pm ET

The Aspen Institute National Commission on Social, Emotional, and Academic Development will release its final report, From a Nation at Risk to a Nation at Hope, at an event on Tues., Jan. 15, 2019, from 9:00 a.m. to noon ET. Register here to watch the livestream as the Commission and its partners share the report’s recommendations in research, practice and policy; announce next steps; and celebrate the movement to support the whole learner. The release will spotlight the voices of educators, students, community leaders and scholars who are part of the growing effort to reshape learning and change lives across America. Follow the Commission on Twitter at @AspenSEAD to stay in the know.

The Forum’s CEO and co-founder Karen Pittman serves as a Commissioner and leads the Youth Development Work Group, convened to ensure that the critical perspective of the youth development sector is reflected in the recommendations being put forth by the Commission.

The Forum for Youth Investment will roll out a series of projects and initiatives in 2019 (in collaboration with partners) that engage diverse groups of local and national leaders in discussions of how the Commission’s recommendations can be further sharpened to ensure that they:

  • speak to the full spectrum of places where and when learning happens,
  • engage youth, family and community as change agents, and
  • use data, dialogue and documentation to tackle the issue of equity head on.

Register here.

Changing the Odds: Virginia Youth Development Conference

January 24, 2019
8:00 am – 4:00 pm ET
Richmond, Virginia

The Forum for Youth Investment is delighted to be teaming up with the Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Richmond to help change the odds that children and youth throughout Virginia will be ready for college, work and life. Together, we are convening leaders from throughout the commonwealth on January 24 to introduce participants to a different way of thinking about what it takes to change the odds for children and youth in Virginia and, more specifically, what youth development programs can do to “up their game” individually and together.

The co-designed agenda promises an interactive day of shared learning combining keynotes, workshops and roundtable discussions. Conference faculty include the Forum’s Karen Pittman, Merita Irby, Larry Pasti and Priscilla Little. Nancy Deutsch, director of Youth-Nex at UVA’s Center to Promote Effective Youth Development at the Curry School of Education, and Candy Markman, retired planning director for Afterschool Initiatives for the Nashville Mayor’s Office of Children and Youth are bringing state and local perspectives to the conversation.

Learn more and register.

Reserve Your Spot at the 8th Annual 2019 Ready by 21 National Meeting!

Spaces are starting to fill up for the Ready by 21 National Meeting in Seattle, Washington on April 23-25, 2019.

Now in its eighth year, the National Meeting brings together more than 500 local, state and national leaders who, like you, are committed to improving the odds that all children and youth can be ready for college, work and life. These leaders manage change at all levels – from state policy coordination and community-wide cradle-to-career efforts to out-of-school time systems, single-issue coalitions and neighborhood-based initiatives.

We hope to see you in Seattle.

Register today!

Just Released: the Metro-Level Opportunity Index

The Forum’s Opportunity Nation, along with its research partner, Child Trends, recently released a pilot Metro-Level Opportunity Index, a modified version of the annual Opportunity Index focused on the nation’s metro areas.

Mirroring the Opportunity Index which summarizes important economic, educational, health and civic indicators of opportunity for the nation, all states and nearly 2,100 counties, the Metro-Level Opportunity Index includes data for 13 metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs)- geographic areas defined by the Census Bureau and unified around a common urban core area. Together, these MSAs include over 76 million people-nearly one-quarter of the US population. The MSAs were selected to participate in this pilot because of their population size, Opportunity Grades received by their component counties and the presence of organizations doing work that is relevant to the Opportunity Index.

Learn more.

Investing in Evidence-Based Social and Emotional Learning

With new flexibility under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) to use federal funds to support social and emotional learning (SEL), evidence-based SEL interventions have gained increased momentum. A recent Rand Corporation report, “Investing in Evidence-Based Social and Emotional Learning,” provides guidance to educators on how to assess local SEL needs and how to identify evidence-based interventions to address those needs. It also advises on how to implement, monitor and evaluate these interventions.

This guide was sponsored by the Wallace Foundation and serves as a companion to a 2017 RAND evidence review of SEL programs intended to better inform practitioners and policymakers on how the programs could be used under ESSA. The original review identifies 60 K-12 SEL programs that meet ESSA Tiers I through III evidence requirements, and it outlines these programs by outcomes, school levels, settings, samples and intervention features.

Review the report.

Explore additional resources on Social and Emotional Learning in the Wallace Foundation’s Knowledge Center.

Collective Impact Learning Lab – Ready by 21 version: Tools & Techniques for Achieving Results

March 26-27, 2019
Silver Spring, Maryland

Please join us for a practical, hands-on two-day workshop and coaching session designed for backbone leaders, steering committee members and other partners actively involved in community change efforts focused on children & youth.

The workshop is designed for leaders who are thinking about how the critical tasks of community change management can be staged and sequenced in order to move steadily towards improving outcomes. It is particularly useful for those in the early stages of forming or planning an initiative, or in the process of re-igniting or refreshing their initiative for the next phase of joint work. Special emphasis is given to tools and techniques that help leaders align and connect multiple issues and efforts, identifying areas for joint planning and action.

Learn more and register today.