CA Budget: Family & Education Advocates Applaud $4.6B for Expanded Learning, Urge Leaders to Direct Funding to Existing Programs

California’s existing After School Education and Safety program, 21st Century Community Learning Centers program, and community-based organizations are vital to successfully combating pandemic learning loss

Advocates call on state leaders to include cost-of-living adjustments for state-funded expanded learning programs and priority COVID-19 vaccination for workers

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

January 13, 2021 — On Friday, California Governor Gavin Newsom released his 2021-2022 budget proposal, which includes $4.6 billion for expanded learning time, including afterschool and summer learning programs, and academic intervention grants to help address learning loss due to the pandemic. The California Afterschool Advocacy Alliance (CA3) issued this statement in response:

“We are incredibly pleased the Governor has recognized the essential role of expanded learning programs, including afterschool and summer learning. These vital programs have been a lifeline for students and families during the pandemic, and over the past two decades have helped combat learning loss and supported the well-being of our most vulnerable students.

An investment of this magnitude has the potential to make a huge difference for California’s kids. We are especially pleased this proposed funding prioritizes students from low-income families, English language learners, youth in foster care, and homeless youth.

Yet, with a tight timeline and without the right conditions, we could miss this opportunity by reinventing the wheel. To ensure this funding reaches the students who need it most as quickly and effectively as possible, we urge state leaders to leverage California’s existing After School Education and Safety (ASES) program and federally-funded 21st Century Community Learning Centers (CCLC) program: a system of more than 4,500 expanded learning programs and community partnerships throughout the state.

In communities without ASES or 21st CCLC programs, we encourage state leaders to instruct local education officials to develop partnerships with community-based organizations, who already have experience and the infrastructure to run quality, research-supported afterschool and summer learning programs.

Expanded learning programs have played an essential role in providing social-emotional, academic, and other support services to children and families, especially in communities hardest hit by the pandemic. Their workforce — composed of teachers, paraprofessionals, and trained staff in community-based organizations — has provided essential support for students and their families struggling with distance learning, drawing on their deep expertise in building trusting relationships — a fundamental condition for learning.

While the Governor’s budget proposal champions expanded learning as an essential component of recovery, his budget neglects to propose a cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for ASES programs. ASES programs normally serve 400,000 students each day in the most underserved communities in the state. Schools — and families — are counting on these programs to continue to provide essential support; staff working on the front line during a pandemic deserve a living wage. The Governor does propose a COLA for other education categorical programs and that, plus the very large overall investment in expanded learning, makes this omission perplexing and it should be rectified.

Additionally, state leaders should ensure the expanded learning workforce, many of whom have been providing in-person support while schools have been closed, is prioritized alongside child care providers and teachers in Phase 1B vaccine distribution so that programs can continue to provide students with essential support and supervision.

We encourage the Governor’s office and the Legislature to work with CA3 and other expanded learning experts who are on the front lines of schools and communities to further develop this budget proposal.”

About the California Afterschool Advocacy Alliance
California Afterschool Advocacy Alliance (CA3) is the statewide voice for expanded learning, including afterschool and summer learning programs. It is the coalition behind the Save Afterschool Campaign and represents the interests of half a million children, youth, and their families that rely on publicly funded expanded learning programs throughout California each day. www.saveafterschool.com

California Afterschool Advocacy Alliance Members
A World Fit for Kids; After-School All-Stars, Los Angeles; arc; Bay Area Community Resources; Boys & Girls Clubs of Carson; California AfterSchool Network; California Alliance of Boys & Girls Clubs; California School-Age Consortium; California State Alliance of YMCAs; California Teaching Fellows Foundation; Children Now; Community Youth Ministries; EduCare Foundation; Fight Crime: Invest in Kids; Foundation for California Community Colleges; Heart of Los Angeles; LA's BEST Afterschool Enrichment Program; LA Conservation Corps; Mission: Readiness; Partnership for Children & Youth; Sacramento Chinese Community Service Center; The Children's Initiative; Think Together; Woodcraft Rangers; YMCA of San Diego County

Contact: Tamara Murray, communications@partnerforchildren.org