About Nevada Afterschool Network

The Nevada Afterschool Network provides opportunities, increases access and promotes quality in out-of-school-time programs in Nevada.

The Nevada Afterschool Network (NAN) is an initiative under the Nevada Institute for Children’s Research and Policy (NICRP) at the UNLV School of Public Health.

NAN is committed to providing a structural network through the development of cooperative partnerships resulting in quality out-of-school time programs. This includes ensuring quality technical support, professional development, sustainable funding and advocacy to promote strong policy for out-of-school-time programs at the local, county, regional and state level.

Mission

Nevada Afterschool Network supports out-of-school time programs to provide access to safe and quality opportunities for all school-age youth.

Vision

All youth have access to safe and quality out-of-school time programs in Nevada.

Core Values

WE BELIEVE THAT

Continuous quality improvement of OST programs is accomplished through intentional interactive communication between the Network, key stakeholders and policymakers resulting in the development of effective policy and acquisition and appropriate distribution of resources to ensure exemplary programming.
Each child’s individual success is dependent on positive growth; cognitively, socially, emotionally and physically, therefore, high-quality OST programs should engage youth equally in these core areas with age-appropriate content to ensure optimal development.
Parents and youth utilizing OST programming should have a voice in the development of these programs, thus creating a basis for learning leadership skills and providing an opportunity to provide important feedback regarding the success of these programs.
It takes the entire Nevada community to align its financial and in-kind resources in support of the positive development of our children and youth, therefore, equal access to Network resources should be a priority for all children our State, regardless of where they reside or socioeconomic status.
OST program staff are the heart and soul of high-quality programming and should be supported with access to regular and meaningful professional development and networking opportunities to expand their knowledge, expertise and partnerships with other program staff across the State.

Why A Network

A network approach to service delivery ensures that Nevada communities can learn from both local and state level resources, as well as gain access to resources on a National level. The Network provides training opportunities and access to resources to enhance the professional development of program providers, the knowledge base of families using Nevada-based OST programs and opportunities for youth. This is accomplished through access to regional and statewide networking and training conferences, access to online professional development opportunities, a liaison with state and national partners to promote quality in all OST youth programs.

OST Programs Work for Kids

Youth who participate in quality OST programs attend school more often, get better grades and are more likely to graduate. Youth in OST programs have a safe place to go when not in school. For every Nevada student in an OST program, one more would participate if a program were available (Afterschool Alliance, 2017). Currently, Nevada has 106,228 students enrolled in programs and another 135,210 students are waiting!

OST Programs Work for Parents

82% of Nevada parents support public funding for afterschool programs.
61% of Nevada parents say afterschool programs help working parents keep their jobs.
69% of Nevada parents believe that afterschool reduces the likelihood that kids will engage in risky behavior.

Whats Next?

The Network will engage in three goal areas over the next three years as part of our overall Strategic Plan. Each one of these goals has a series of components that will enable us to build the network, ensure the quality of OST programs across the state and improve access to a variety of learning opportunities for program providers, parents and community members.

Goal 1:

Create a sustainable structure of statewide, regional and local partnerships, particularly school-community partners, focused on supporting policy development at all levels.

This goal will be accomplished through the development of regional mini-networks, increasing online learning and networking opportunities, and promoting in-person training and networking opportunities regionally and statewide.

Goal 2:

Support the development and growth of statewide policies that will secure the resources that are needed to sustain new and existing school-based/school-linked afterschool programs.

This goal will be accomplished by expanding the partners in the overall network, increasing membership, offering fee based services, and engaging in statewide funding opportunities to increase the outreach efforts by the Network.

Goal 3:

Support statewide systems to ensure programs are of high quality.

This goal will be accomplished by increasing the number of providers trained on the OST Quality Standards for Nevada, increased opportunities for professional development for providers, and the implementation of the Network Innovation Project.

Using the OST Quality Standards for Nevada developed and approved by the Network-Legislative partnership in 2014, several pilot opportunities will be offered to providers across the state to increase quality in their programs and draft policy for consideration at the 2021 Legislative Session.