Georgia has been selected to be the next pilot state for a professional development opportunity for front- line providers of afterschool-youth development programs! Invited by the C.S. Mott Foundation, Georgia falls next in line to North Carolina to receive an intensive 2 ½ day training from national experts. These national experts consist of a consortium of afterschool leaders including Foundations, Inc., Citizen Schools, the Community Network for Youth Development, the YouthLearn Initiative at Education Development Center, Inc., and Gary and Eve Moody (formerly from Arnold's All-Stars). The purpose of these academies is to better equip staff with the knowledge and skills needed to blend academic content with youth development in afterschool programming. GAIC will need to identify 80-100 staff who will be interested in receiving this training in the Fall of 2006.

Action Step: Let GAIC know how this opportunity might be valuable to your organization.

The America’s Promise Alliance State Project, in partnership with Alliance state affiliates, will develop five state-level projects in 2006. Georgia will join four other states (IA, PA, NM, WA) by showcasing a different leadership model for collaboration and impact. These five states were selected based on an assessment of affiliate capacity, geographic diversity and willingness to successfully coordinate and execute state-level collaborative projects. These projects are expected to leverage existing Alliance initiatives as well as increase public/private collaboration, raise visibility and amplify current capacity of Alliance state-affiliates.

Next steps for GAIC will be to select a high- level “Think Tank” group who will come together at the end of March or early April to determine a workplan. Congratulations to each of you for bringing so much attention to our work. The news about our collective commitment is spreading!

The Georgia Afterschool Board Nominating Committee met again on February 13, 2006, to further clarify the balance and mix of board members needed. All nominations are being considered by the Steering Committee for Board of Directors or Advisory Board slots. A list of potential candidates was developed based on input from Steering Committee members and the community at-large. The committee is keenly focused on two areas: 1.) securing a Board Champion, and 2.) ensuring that our first Board is made up of members whereby at least 50% come from the private sector.
Thanks to the leadership of our Board Nominating committee, we are making some headway that will ultimately get us to a worthy destination.

Action Step: A smart non-profit is always recruiting and building new champions to support our work. Always think about key business leaders that would be interested in sitting on our board, now and for the future, and share these ideas with GAIC staff.

The GAIC and the Mott Foundation hosted a breakfast for VIP guests to learn more about our work to improve outcomes for Georgia’s youth through out-of-school time programs. Thanks to the leadership at the United Way and their Community Impact Council, the GAIC was successful in pulling together key leaders such as Jack Hardin (Hardin and Rogers), Ayesha Khanna (CEO of United Way) and Kathy Ramos (Coca-Cola). Other key leaders in attendance were Jose Perez and Brad Bryant (State Board of Education Members), Emmett Johnson (APS School Board), Linda Johnson (Assistant Commissioner from DOL), Justine Strickland (Assistant Commissioner from Bright from the Start: DECAL), Pat Willis (VOICES), Jill Riemer (GAIC), Laureen Lamb (UWMA), Terry Peterson (Afterschool Alliance), An- Me Chung (C.S. Mott Foundation), Eugene Hillsman (C.S. Mott Foundation) and Janelle Cousino (Fowler Hoffman).

Word One presented Georgia Afterschool with a communications and marketing plan that is built off of the work started back in July with the phone interviews and brand incubator session in August. The plan identifies target audiences, a summary of GAIC’s key messages, and an outline of specific goals for Georgia Afterschool and our partner organizations. An implementation plan will be forthcoming.

Logo options were also presented for consideration by the transition team. Revisions will be shared soon helping GAIC move one step closer to completing our branding work

Action Step: Get ready to talk with GAIC about co-branding opportunities!

Approximately $10.4 million may be available from the Georgia Department of Education for competitive Title IV, Part B, 21st CCLC grants for 2006-2007. For more grant information, visit http://public.doe.k12.ga.us/ci_iap_learning.aspx and download the Request for Proposals, Grant Application Guidance and Scoring Rubric.

Grant Writing Workshops for interested applicants are scheduled throughout Georgia on March 9, 13 and 15 (see Appendix G of the Request for Proposals for locations).

If you have questions about this important program and grant opportunity, contact Julie Flores Demers at (404) 463-1723 or jdemers@doe.k12.ga.us.

Action Step: Encourage your networks to spread the word about this important grant opportunity.

Next Steering Committee meeting will be held at the United Way of Metropolitan Atlanta on March 16, 2006 from 12:00-2:30 pm. [Guy Millner Conference Room on 2nd Floor].

Next policy committee meeting will take place from 10-12 noon prior to the Steering Committee meeting. Details to follow from policy co-chairs.

Jill J. Riemer
Executive Director
jriemer@unitedwayatlanta.org
Office: 404-527-7250
Fax: 404-527-7353

Karin Hong
Coordinator
khong@unitedwayatlanta.org
Office: 404-527-7232
Fax: 404-527-7353

khong@unitedwayatlanta.org