Publications & Resources

Making Afterschool Programs Better

Jul 2011

Denise Huang and Ronald Dietel

The number of students attending afterschool programs has skyrocketed in recent years, currently serving an estimated 8.4 million children (Afterschool Alliance, 2009). Consequently, the demand for high quality afterschool programs, and to learn from successful ones, has never been greater. This Making Afterschool Programs Better policy brief, synthesizes the results from nearly 20 years of experience in evaluating afterschool programs through five key components: goals, leadership, staff, program and evaluation. CRESST evaluations include U.S. Department of Education supported 21st Century Community Learning Center programs, state-supported afterschool programs across California, and multiple evaluations of the LA’s Better Educated Students for Tomorrow enrichment program. CRESST is pleased to share this brief with the goal that others will benefit from our findings and recommendations; thus, providing an increasing number of children with a high quality afterschool program leading to exceptional learning and successful careers.

Huang, D., & Dietel, R. (2011). Making afterschool programs better (CRESST Policy Brief No. 11). Los Angeles: University of California, Los Angeles, National Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, and Student Testing (CRESST).

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