Arizona Center for Afterschool Excellence (AzCASE) — Early Bird Registration is Now Open for the Oct. 17-30 Virtual Conference!

Frank Moraga | July 21, 2020

The Arizona Center for Afterschool Excellence is celebrating

30 years of serving Arizona’s youth program providers.

Program Resources

Events

Promoting Quality

Early Bird Registration is Now Open for the Conference!

Early Bird Registration is now open for the 28th Annual School’s Out, Make It Count Conference, taking place virtually from October 17 – 30, 2020.

60 hours of workshops for OST Staff, Teachers and Paraprofessionals
Continuing Education Units available for all workshops
CARE monies maybe used toward registration

Head to our website for more information, including a registration tutorial to walk you through the steps!

Learn more & register

21-Day Racial Equity & Social Justice Challenge

Wondering how you can learn more about racial justice and what you can do to make your community more equitable? Join the YWCA’s 21-day Racial Equity and Social Justice Challenge! This 21-day journey will help individuals become more mindful about how racial inequities impact census & voting, education, criminal justice and public health. Participation in an activity like this helps us understand how racial injustice and social injustice impact our community and how to identify ways to dismantle racism and discrimination. Each day has learning options for you to choose from in order to shape your own learning. There is no cost to participate. The Challenge officially starts today, Monday, July 20, but if you can’t get started right away, that’s okay – join in when you can. All are welcome to participate.

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30-Minute Webinars for Youth Development Professionals

During the month of July, Everybody Matters is offering 30-minute, get-to-the-point webinars on six hot topics. Each one is repeated four times this month. Each webinar is repeated four times during July. Attend one, or attend all six! Their “Get to the Point PD” will quickly summarize the topic and, more importantly, provide you with tools you can use. Professional learning certificates will be provided.

Topics include:

Stress Less | Tuesdays at 10:00

Practical strategies for turning off your body’s stress response.

Moving from Mind Fullness to Mindfulness | Wednesdays at 10:00

The basics of mindfulness, one of the most effective tools for stress management.

Professional Sustainability | Thursdays at 10:00

Don’t count the days to retirement, savor them. Learn to love your work as an educator.

Trauma-Sensitive Classrooms | Tuesdays at 3:00

A quick review of how childhood trauma changes classroom behavior.

Trauma-Sensitive Instruction | Wednesdays at 3:00

Children from trauma need more than just de-escalation, they need learning experiences that challenge them without re-escalating them.

How to Welcome Youth Back from a Five-Month Long Break | Thursdays at 3:00

Last March you told your students to have a nice spring break and you waved goodbye, expecting to see them in a week. That was several months ago. Let’s talk about how we can deal with this lack of closure and loss of connection.

These sessions are free for anyone who works with children! For any questions, email prodev@everybodymattersaz.org.

Learn more & register

HOT TIP: Everybody Matters is presenting at the AzCASE Virtual Conference this October! Sign up at the early bird rate here>>

Listening & Healing Sessions for Educators

Marissa Badgley of Reloveution knows that afterschool professionals go above and beyond for their students in ordinary circumstances and have unsurprisingly stepped up in powerful ways to support young people, families, and communities throughout the COVID-19 pandemic and in the face of escalating racial tension across our country. You are not a robot and that you are not walking away from these last few months unscathed. You are likely hurting, frustrated, and emotionally exhausted by what you have seen and experienced, and likely anxious, worried, and doubtful about what is to come when schools re-open (or don’t re-open) in the fall.

Over this summer, Reloveution is committed to creating space for YOU and other passionate educators from around the country to process the trauma you have personally and collectively faced, reflect on the experiences you have had, and emotionally prepare for whatever comes next. This is not about adding more to your plate and while we will give you tools to try and time to try them, our spaces will be focused on collective healing, reflection, belonging, and growth rather than typical professional development or training. We invite you and all of the educators you know to join us for one, several, or all sessions.

Learn more & register

FUN FACT: Marissa Badgley of Reloveution is presenting at the AzCASE Virtual Conference this October! Sign up at the early bird rate here>>

Join the AzCASE Team!

We’re hiring for a part-time Operations Assistant (20-25 hours per week). This position reports to the Executive Director and is responsible for a variety of administrative duties; social media and program outreach; event support; and tracking and maintenance of the Make it Count Pledge and AzQSAT. To apply, please send a cover letter and resume to csullivan@azafterschool.org.

View the Full Position Description

Arizona Quality Out-of-School Time Programs

There is widespread agreement that while out-of-school time programs can be strong tools for youth development, this is only the case when these programs are of high quality. Quality programs come in a variety of shapes and sizes. There is no one program, style, curriculum, or method that meets the needs of all youth. Rather, a quality program is one that is a living organism, growing and adapting to meet the needs of all youth. Learn about the Arizona Continuous Quality Improvement Process for out-of-school time programs on our website here.

Need help or have questions about the Arizona Quality Standards? Just give us a call! 602.734.5434.