Alexandria, Va. - June 7 - The National School Boards Association (NSBA) will continue to build the capacity of local school boards to promote high-quality, extended-day learning opportunities for all students with the help of a $300,000 grant from the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation.
Since 2001, with funding from the Mott Foundation, NSBA has been helping state school boards associations and local school boards provide leadership and establish collaborations to support after-school and summer programs that promote student success and community engagement.
This new award will continue The Extended-Day Learning Opportunities program (EDLO) until 2007.
“We recognize the importance of meeting students’ learning needs both during school hours and beyond the school day,” said Anne L. Bryant, NSBA executive director. “We are grateful to the Mott Foundation for providing the funding for us to continue to promote these programs, which are among the most innovative educational activities today.”
This year, NSBA published a report on successful school board practices in support of after-school programs. Building and Sustaining After-School Programs: Successful Practices in School Board Leadership presents ways school boards can promote student success and community engagement by supporting extended learning opportunities.
With the new grant, NSBA will focus on three core activities:
- Raising awareness among school board leaders of what quality after-school programs are and how they can help improve public education;
- Assisting state school boards associations and local school boards in building and sustaining after-school programs and infrastructures; and
- Increasing the visibility of school boards as leaders and key partners in the after-school movement and policy dialogue at the local, state, and national levels.
“Extended learning opportunities play a crucial role in promoting student success and involving the community in schools,” Bryant said. “We look forward to continuing this work with our school board leaders.”
In addition, NSBA maintains a comprehensive Web site that houses information for school board members and other stakeholders in ensuring the success of programs that serve students beyond the regular school day. The EDLO Online Resource Center can be found at www.nsba.org/edlo .
To carry out the activities of the EDLO program, NSBA works with a 22-member advisory committee composed of representatives from national and state associations and organizations, and collaborates with other education- and community-related groups.
Founded in 1940, the National School Boards Association is a not-for profit federation of state associations of school boards representing 95,000 local school board members throughout the United States. Its mission is to foster excellence and equity in public elementary and secondary education through local school board leadership. NSBA represents the school board perspective in working with federal government agencies and national organizations that impact education, and provides vital information and services to state associations of school boards throughout the nation.
The Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, established in 1926 in Flint, Michigan, by an automotive pioneer, is a private philanthropy committed to supporting projects that promote a just, equitable and sustainable society. It supports nonprofit programs throughout the United States and, on a limited geographic basis, internationally. Grantmaking is focused in four programs: Civil Society, Environment, Flint Area and Pathways Out of Poverty. Besides Flint, offices are located in Detroit, Johannesburg (South Africa) and London with additional staff in Cork, Ireland. The Foundation, with year-end total assets of approximately $2.52 billion, made 558 grants totaling $98.7 million in 2004. For more information about the Foundation, visit the Mott Foundation at www.mott.org
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