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The Administration’s proposed budget released in 2020 eliminates funding for the Nita M. Lowey 21st Century Community Learning Centers Program for the fourth year in a row. It’s now up to Congress to counter the cut — or eliminate 21st CCLC thereby getting rid of programs relied on by families across the nation to keep kids safe and engaged.  For the last three years, your outreach helped persuade Congress to protect afterschool, but we need your help again to let Congress know that these programs are vital to our state!

Below are different ways for you to show your support for 21st CCLC, regardless of whether you are a 21st CCLC program, parent, partner, or concerned citizen. If you are not sure whether your organization can advocate and/or lobby, click here for some useful tips. If you have any questions regarding lobbying versus advocacy, please email info@afterschoolga.org.

Support #21stCCLC on Social Media!

Post about why you support 21st CCLC using the hashtags #AfterschoolWorks OR #ThisIsAfterschool on social media sites like LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to help spread the message! To access the full social media toolkit that includes district-specific posts, click here.

Can’t Wait? Tweet something now!

  • The research is clear- #21stCCLC helps students succeed in college, careers, & life: https://bit.ly/3bvmnHx #AfterschoolWorks [click to tweet this!]
  • #21stCCLC provides 26,000 of GA’s youth with a safe & enriching place to go after school: https://bit.ly/2vkSZ6h [click to tweet this!]
  • Afterschool programs funded by #21stCCLC in Georgia improve school day attendance over not only the average for low-income students, but the state average as well. #AfterschoolWorks [click to tweet this!]
  • More than 70 percent of students in STEM afterschool programs reported positive gains in science career interest and knowledge and building skills such as perseverance and critical thinking. #AfterschoolWorks [click to tweet this!]

 Reach Out to Your Congressmen

We strongly encourage you to reach out to your Congressmen directly and ask them to support the 21st CCLC program! Remember that calling and leaving a message with their aid is most effective!

After you have reached out yourself, encourage your program’s partners, networks, families, and anyone else you can think of to reach out using one of our sample action alerts below:

Share Research on Why #AfterschoolWorks

Check out our materials on 21st CCLC in Georgia, including GSAN’s report released looking at key student outcome data and the return on investment of the 21st Century Community Learning Centers (21st CCLC) Program and the Afterschool Care Program housed at the Georgia Division of Familly and Children Services (DFCS)! These materials are a great resource to share the value of 21st CCLC electronically or in-person with your network!