Today We Are Thankful

We know that the holidays are a time to remind us to be thankful for what we have. From all of us at Temescal Associates and the How Kids Learn Foundation, we wish you a peaceful and restful holiday! We are most grateful to all of you who work hard to support our youth in out of school time. 

 

The Importance of Financial Literacy

By Sam Piha 

Source: Vermont Afterschool, Inc.

In 2023 we made the case that, “financial well-being is a growing problem for today's youth. For instance, today’s youth can amass debt quickly, often in the form of school loans or credit card debt. We know from research that young people who are financially literate make much better decisions regarding their future finances. However, most young people, especially youth of color, lack access to financial literacy information. This is referred to as America’s financial literacy gap. Afterschool programs are especially well positioned to address the need for financial literacy. ”[i]

We posted a LIAS blog, released a briefing paper and hosted a webinar/training to raise awareness and understanding of the importance of financial literacy for youth. Thus, we were excited to learn from California’s EdSource that, “soon, all California high school students will learn about college grants and loans, how tax rates work, the benefits of insurance and how interest high rates can blow your budget when you miss a payment on a credit card.”

“Research shows that students who have access to high-quality financial education have better financial outcomes as adults that result in less debt and a higher quality of life.” - Tony Thurmond, California Superintendent of Schools

This week, legislators rushed to pass legislation that would make California the 26th state to require a course in personal finance as a requirement for high school graduation as of 2030-31. A semester of personal finance must be offered in all high schools starting in 2026-27. Under the bill, the Instruction Quality Commission, which reports to the State Board of Education, will create a curriculum guide and resources for a personal finance course by May 31, 2026.

The course will include these topics:

• Fundamentals of personal banking, including savings and checking accounts
• Budgeting for independent living
• Financing college and other career options
• Understanding taxes and factors that affect net income
• Credit, including credit scores and the relation of debt to credit
• Consumer protection skills like identifying scams and preventing identity theft
• Charitable giving
• Principles of investing and building wealth, including pensions and IRAs, stocks, bonds, and mutual funds” [ii]

“It’s often the students who need financial literacy the most that receive it the least. Parents of low-income students are far less likely to be financially literate themselves, which means they can’t pass that knowledge down to their children. I truly believe this bill is one of the most impactful and feasible ways we can combat wealth inequality in our state.” - Kayvon Banankhah, a high school junior from Modesto, CA

When asked in a survey, youth reported learning how to manage money was “meaningful” and something they wanted.



Source- Youth Voice: Future Directions for Afterschool Prepares Youth for the Future 

1,087 young people who participate in 321 afterschool programs responded to the survey.

END NOTES

[i] Temescal Associates, Promoting Financial Literacy for Youth in Afterschool Programs
[ii] John Fensterwald, Add personal finance to what every California high school graduate must learn

The Wonder of Being Kind

Source: Character.org

Sixth grade student, Aishi Roy, wrote this essay, which was originally published by Character.org’s The Laws of Life essay contest. This contest encourages elementary, middle, and high school students to reflect and write about a core value that means the most to them – and why.

...

It all started one Monday during lunchtime as I was scouting for my usual group and they were nowhere to be seen in the cafeteria.  

When I noticed a new girl sitting alone at lunch. Her name was Anne, and she seemed shy and nervous. I remembered how it felt to be the new kid in school since I have moved a lot, so I decided to go over and asked “Mind, if I sit here?” Anne nodded. I asked her where she is from. Anne replied, “From Russia.” 

I realized that she was not only new to school but also to the USA. It was a much bigger shift for her than I thought it would be. At that moment, I thought I could develop a new friendship; in this way, I would learn something new and help her with things around school. For the next couple of days, we started hanging out during lunch, and I would help her with small things. It was like a chain reaction of kindness, all because one person took the time to show a little compassion. All of my friends started doing the same. 

It felt like being nice and kind is like having a magic touch that can truly transform the world for the better. It's not a word, it's a way of living. Just imagine if everyone treated each other with kindness, what a world that would be! 

I have found that in my school life, when I am helping a friend with their studies, lending an ear to someone in need of support, or consoling someone who is feeling down, kindness has the ability to make an impact on people's lives. When we extend warmth to others it motivates them to reciprocate in kind. 

Moreover, kindness isn't about how we interact with others; it also encompasses how we treat ourselves. It's vital to extend kindness towards ourselves—to practice self-compassion and self-care. This entails being gentle with ourselves, forgiving our missteps and acknowledging our value. By being kind to ourselves we enhance our ability to display kindness towards others. 

In essence kindness is indeed a strength that resides within each of us. It holds the potential to transform the world through acts of goodwill. As a 12-year-old I hold the magic power to impact those around me positively by doing small acts of kindness. 

Let’s spread kindness everywhere we go and see how the world transforms into a joyful place, for everyone. Keep in mind kindness isn't merely an action we take; it's a reflection of ourselves. Lastly, kindness has this ability to spread from one person to another like wildfire.

MORE ABOUT…

Aishi Roy is a 6th grader at Rose Hill Middle School, Washington.

 

 

The Laws of Life essay contest sponsored by Character.org encourages elementary, middle, and high school students to reflect and write about a core value that means the most to them – and why.

Character.org is a non-partisan organization that advocates for character.

It is comprised of educators, researchers, business and civic leaders who care deeply about the vital role that character will play in our future. Their worldwide network empowers people of all ages to practice and model core values that shape our hearts, minds, and choices. Their mission is to provide global leadership, voice, and resources for developing character in families, schools, and organizations. 

LIAS Learning Principles: Taking Another Look

Source: Real Options for City Kids San Francisco (ROCK SF) 

By Sam Piha

Afterschool youth programs, sometimes referred to as out-of-school time or expanded learning programs, have unique advantages that perfectly position them to complement the learning that happens at school and home, and offer valuable extended learning opportunities. If afterschool programs are to achieve their full potential, they must be known as important places of learning that excite young people in the building of new skills, the discovery of new interests, and opportunities to achieve a sense of mastery. 

In 2010, Temescal Associates launched the Learning in Afterschool and Summer (LIAS) Project to address a great debate as to whether afterschool programs should be focused on academic or youth development outcomes. It was designed to unify the field of afterschool and focus the movement on promoting young people’s learning. The LIAS Learning Principles became a foundational part of the California Quality Standards for Expanded Learning Programs.

We developed research-based LIAS Learning Principle and brought together afterschool leaders from across California to review and help shape the Learning Principles. 

Source: Temescal Associates

These learning principles are strongly supported by recent brain research, afterschool research, and the growing science of learning. They are also well aligned with the 21st century learning skills and workforce skills that young people will need to succeed in the years ahead, as well as efforts to increase young people’s interest in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). Each of the learning principles cited below support each other and provide an important framework for afterschool programming. 

“These principles, all critical, reflect what our own field experience and research suggest about the characteristics of effective learning environments. They speak to both staff practices and program content, which is important. I think that working toward mastery, which goes right to the intersection of program content and staff practices – is something we need to be more intentional about in out-of-school time (OST) settings.”- Karen Pittman, Co-Founder of the Forum for Youth Investment 

Source: Temescal Associates

We believe the learning principles are still relevant and useful today. Each of the learning principles cited below support each other and provide an important framework to guide the design, implantation and evaluation of afterschool programs. Below are the LIAS learning principles:

1. Learning must be ACTIVE


Learning and memory recall of new knowledge is strengthened through different exposures – seeing, hearing, touching, and doing. Afterschool learning should be the result of activities that involve young people in “doing” – activities that allow them to be physically active, stimulate their innate curiosity, and that are hands-on and project-based. (CA Quality Standards #2, 3, & 5)



2. Learning must be COLLABORATIVE


Afterschool and summer programs should help young people build team skills that include listening to others, supporting group learning goals, and resolving differences and conflicts.
Collaborative learning happens when learners engage in a common task where each individual depends on and is accountable to each other. (CA Quality Standards #1, 2, 3, & 8)



3. Learning must be MEANINGFUL


Learning is meaningful when youth have some ownership over the learning topic, the means to assess their own progress, and when the learning is relevant to their own interests, experiences, and the real world in which they live. Community and cultural relevance is important to all youth. (CA Quality Standards #2, 3, & 4)

 

4. Learning must SUPPORT MASTERY


If young people are to learn the importance and joy of mastery, they need the opportunity to learn and practice a full sequence of skills that will allow them to become “really good at something.” Afterschool and summer activities should be explicitly sequenced and designed to promote the layering of new skills. (CA Quality Standard #3)



“We spend so much time focused on "achievement" and so little time focused on how to motivate students to learn. The principles advocated by Learning in Afterschool strike the right balance and make sense. We want to see a more holistic approach taken to educating children, one that responds to the developmental needs of the student and focuses on fostering intellectual curiosity and a love of learning. The principles contained in Learning in Afterschool and Summer promote such an approach, and if applied with fidelity, could lead to real improvements in educational outcomes for kids.”- Pedro Noguera, Emery Stoops and Joyce King Stoops Dean of the USC Rossier School of Education. 

5. Learning must EXPANDS HORIZONS


Afterschool and summer programs should provide learning opportunities that take youth beyond their current experience and expand their horizons. They should go beyond the walls of their facilities to increase young people’s knowledge of their surrounding neighborhood and the larger global community. (CA Quality Standards #2 & 3) 

WHAT OTHER LEADERS SAY ABOUT THE LIAS LEARNING PRINCIPLES

Source: Temescal Associates 

“All five principles are critical. They collectively provide the relevance so desperately needed for students to become engaged and for learning to become alive for them. They also provide the deeper understanding and the discovery of learning that is critical for success in school and life.” - Dr. Willard Daggett, Founder and Chairman, International Center for Leadership in Education

“I used the LIAS principles because I felt they captured many of the core elements that a successful afterschool program should have.  Actually, those principles should be reflected in classrooms during the regular school day as well.” - Pedro Noguera, Emery Stoops and Joyce King Stoops Dean of the USC Rossier School of Education. 

“The five LIAS principles are perfectly aligned with a 21st century learning approach – active, meaningful, collaborative learning projects that provide opportunities to expand one’s horizons and master important knowledge and skills – this is the heart of 21st century learning.” - Bernie Trilling, Author of 21st Century Skills: Learning for Life in Our Times

 “Afterschool and out-of-school instruction needs to be constructed in a way that is consistent and sustained with high quality instruction as well. In other words, how are teachers, mentors, and facilitators trained to ensure ‘active, collaborative, meaningful, supports mastery, and expands horizons’ are actualized in afterschool programs?” - Richard Milne, Associate Professor of Education, Vanderbilt University

Click images below to view two brief videos that detail the LIAS Learning Principles and are excellent for staff training and discussion.

LIAS RESOURCES

Check out the LIAS Website to find additional materials, tools and resources.

The Do's and Don't's for Charities in an Election Year

Source: www.pexels.com

Youth program and non-profit leaders sometimes feel sidelined by the tax code, believing that speaking out about elections is not allowed. But let’s dig deeper. Below we offer a guest blog on this topic, which was originally published by Techsoup. NOTE: This article is for general informational purposes only and does not represent legal advice as to any particular set of facts. Please seek legal counsel as you deem necessary.

Eric Gorovitz

By Guest Blogger Eric Gorovitz, Principal Attorney, Adler & Colvin; Techsoup

The rules governing charities leave lots of room for charities not only to advocate vigorously in service of their communities, even in an election year, but also to participate in the election itself.

By "charities," we mean nonprofit organizations exempt under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. As a general rule, nonprofit organizations, including those exempt under other sections, like social welfare organizations [501(c)(4)], labor unions [501(c)(5)], and trade associations [501(c)(6)], are permitted to influence elections more directly than charities. The subject of this article, however, is limited to charities.

While charities cannot take sides in candidate elections, there is much they can do to promote issues of interest, educate candidates about those issues, inform the public about candidate views, and both encourage and enable voter participation in the election.

Armed with a better understanding of the rules, and how to implement them, charities can keep making noise and engaging their constituencies before, during, and after the election.

Issue Advocacy
The fact that an election is coming up does not mean that charities have to stay quiet about the issues that matter to them, even if candidates are also talking about those issues. It does mean, however, that charities have to be thoughtful about how they talk about those issues.

The IRS uses a relatively, but not completely, vague "facts and circumstances" test to determine whether a given communication constitutes issue advocacy or candidate campaign intervention. The former is permissible for a charity; the latter is not. The IRS looks at both the content and the context of a charity's communication and considers the presence or absence of a number of factors to decide whether the communication is appropriate for a charity.

Although there is no exhaustive list of factors, the IRS has identified in Revenue Ruling 2007-41 (PDF) the following factors as important to its analysis:

• Whether the communication identifies one or more candidates for public office (if yes, the risk goes up)
• Whether the communication expresses approval or disapproval for one or more candidates' positions or actions (if yes, the risk goes up)
• Whether the communication is delivered close in time to the election (if yes, the risk goes up)
• Whether the issue addressed in the communication has been raised as an issue distinguishing candidates for a given office (if yes, the risk goes up)
• Whether the communication targets voters in a particular election (if yes, the risk goes up)
• Whether the communication is part of an ongoing series of communications by the organization on the same issue that are made independent of the timing of any election (if yes, the risk goes down)
• Whether the timing of the communication and identification of the candidate are related to a nonelectoral event such as a scheduled vote on specific legislation by an officeholder who also happens to be a candidate for public office (if yes, the risk goes down).

The analysis is not just a counting of factors, though, and they don't all have equal weight. Much depends on the substance, appearance, and manner of distribution of the communication. A charity that knows the rules can design communications during election season specifically to ensure that it does not break the rules.

Source: www.pexels.com

Educating and Engaging Candidates and Voters
Charities can also educate candidates and voters and promote voter participation in the election, so long as they conduct those activities in a way that does not reflect support for or opposition to any particular candidate or party for election. These "nonpartisan" activities, also explained more fully in Rev. Rul. 2007-41 (see link above), can include (among others) the following, if properly designed and conducted:

• Voter guides and candidate questionnaires
• Candidate forums and debates
• Voter registration activities that do not target voters based on voting preferences. (Caution: Private foundations generally cannot fund or conduct voter registration drives.)
• Get-out-the-vote activities that do not target voters based on voting preferences
• Sharing previously prepared educational materials with all candidates in a given race, but not producing new material at a candidate’s request

A Few No-Nos
Of course, some activities that charities occasionally consider are clearly not permissible. These include (among others) the following:

• Asking candidates to pledge to support or oppose a particular position, if elected
• Endorsing any candidate or party for election at any charity event or in any charity publication, newsletter, e-mail, or social media communication
• Making contributions to candidates or parties
• Providing tailored information to candidates upon request
• Allowing a candidate or party to use any charity resources for campaign purposes

Stay Involved, but Manage Your Risk
The outcome of elections is often important to a charity's ability to accomplish its mission and to the well-being of its constituents. Fortunately, the onset of election season does not prevent charities from loudly and vigorously pursuing their charitable purposes. While there are risks to manage, charities that know the rules can stay actively involved in the public discussion, even during election season.

Additional Resources to Learn More

From TechSoup:

• Read about what grantees need to know about due diligence.
• Learn What's the Difference Between a Nonprofit and a Charity?
• Get background on Lobbying by U.S. Public Charities and Their Foreign Equivalents.
• Go deeper on Political Campaign Activity.

From Alliance for Justice:

• Rules of the Game: Nonpartisan Election Year Advocacy (Podcast episode)
• Comparison of 501(c)(3) and 501(c)(4) Permissible Activities
• Praising and Criticizing Incumbents

From the IRS:

• Election Year Activities and the Prohibition on Political Campaign Intervention for Section 501(c)(3) Organizations (PDF)
• Election Year Issues (PDF)

MORE ABOUT…

Eric Gorovitz's practice spans the full range of nonprofit and tax-exempt legal issues, with emphasis on political advocacy and nonprofit corporate governance. Mr. Gorovitz is the former President of Youth Enrichment Strategies and served on the board of an independent school. He is also a member of the California Political Attorneys Association, the tax law section of the American Bar Association, the California State Bar Association, and the Bar Association of San Francisco. He has lectured at (among others) U.C. Berkeley, Johns Hopkins University, U.C. Hastings School of Law, and Golden Gate University School of Law, and conducted trainings for nonprofit organizations across the country. Mr. Gorovitz has served as Director of the West Coast office of Alliance for Justice; Policy Director at the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence, the Million Mom March, and the Trauma Foundation.

Techsoup equips changemakers with transformative technology solutions and skills they need to improve lives globally and locally. They do much more than offer discounts on the tools that you need. Read about all their great initiatives and how they get these resources — and more — into the hands of people working for good all over the world.

Lights on Afterschool Planning Tool

To learn more about this event, sponsored by the Ever Forward Club, click here.

Beyond Voting: What Else Youth Can Do in the 2024 Elections

By Sam Piha

The 2024 election offers a number of opportunities to engage older youth. These opportunities go beyond voting. (This blog is an excerpt from our recently released briefing paper entitled, How Can Afterschool Programs Promote Civic Engagement and the Youth Vote in 2024.)

Serve as a Voting Captain
“This is someone who volunteers to get-out-the-vote by talking to their friends and family about making a voting plan. This is a quick, easy and covid-safe volunteer opportunity to get out the vote. Studies have shown that talking to friends and family is the most effective way to increase voter turnout.” [i]

Serve as a Political Campaign Volunteer
Supporting a campaign may involve an important issue or a candidate. Youth can:

• Volunteer on a local, state, or national political campaign
• Attend a campaign event with a family member
• Talk to those who are eligible to vote about your preferred candidates, what they stand for, and why it matters to you.

Serve as a Poll Worker
“Poll workers are critical to the success of an election. Having an adequate number of poll workers to staff polling places on and before Election Day can ensure voters receive the assistance they need at the polls and can help provide a positive and smooth voting experience for all. By signing up to be a poll worker, you can Help America Vote. 

Source: Grow the Vote

While specific duties and compensation vary depending on location, poll workers are the face of the election office during voting. Most jurisdictions task election workers with setting up and preparing the polling location, welcoming voters, verifying voter registrations, and issuing ballots. Poll workers also help ensure voters understand the voting process by demonstrating how to use voting equipment and explaining voting procedures.” [ii]

Click here to learn a few important steps poll workers can take to ensure they are ready for Election Day. Click here to learn more about becoming a poll worker in the future, for more information on being a poll worker in your community and how to sign up.

END NOTES
[i] Turnout Nation, Become a Voting Captain
[ii] U.S. Election Assistance Commission, Poll Worker Resources for Voters 

To learn more about this event, sponsored by the Ever Forward Club, click here.

Youth Vote 2024: Ways Youth Under 18 Can Contribute to Elections

Source: Center for Tech and Civic Life

By Sam Piha

The 2024 election offers a number of opportunities to engage older youth. But these opportunities require input from youth and staff, organizing and planning- so start program planning NOW!  

There is no better time for youth to be involved in making a change through the ballot box. We can frame these efforts as “meaningful participation”, “civic engagement”, “youth leadership” or “community service”. There are a number of organizations and initiatives that have designed curriculums, program tools and other materials to assist afterschool providers in their efforts to engage youth in the 2024 elections. This blog is an excerpt from our recently released briefing paper entitled, How Can Afterschool Programs Promote Civic Engagement and the Youth Vote in 2024.

“Our youth feel that their voice matters even if they cannot vote". - John Fuentes, Associate Director, Bay Area Community Resources (BACR)

“There are countless ways for young people under 18 to participate in democracy. These contributions can occur in a range of settings and have a wide-reaching influence. These ways of engaging are steps on a path to growing as a future voter and to help grow voters in your community.

Support Your Family & Friends' Participation

• Ask your friends and family if they are eligible and registered to vote, and if necessary bring them information to help them register. If they’re not eligible, ask them how they are going to participate
• Help friends and family find reliable information about the election, the candidates, and important issues that they care about
• Watch and discuss a local or national debate/forum with your family and friends
• Organize or support conversations at school about elections and voting
• Bring the Teaching for Democracy Alliance checklist or commitment to school leaders and work with them to make a plan to support student learning 

Uplift Stories & Issues You Care About

• Do research on an issue/policy you’re interested in to find reliable information on the candidates’ stance on the issue, and then share your viewpoint with those who can vote
• Factcheck your research and then create media (e.g. images, videos, music) about candidates or issues you’re interested in and share them with others
• Evaluate a range of news media coverage of the issues and candidates to understand how journalists are covering the election
• Contact local media outlets about the issues you care about and offer to share your opinions and insights
• Create media about the people and issues in a community that has few local media outlets or that you think hasn’t been portrayed accurately in election coverage
• Tell stories about how youth of all ages—especially those from communities of color—are engaging in the election and share it with news organizations and social media so that a wider diversity of young people are better represented

Be a Part of the Process

• Find out if you can work at the polls on Election Day—many states allow 16- and 17-year-olds to do it!
• Work with a local organization that is registering others to vote
• Design posters with key information about how, when and where to vote, and put them up at school and in your community
• Send your friends and family reminders of when and where to vote on Election Day—even drive them if they need a ride!” [i] 

Start A Discussion Group at School

“Political polarization is a dire problem in American high schools today. Crossing the Divide is a national high school club facilitating the conversations we desperately need.” They provide instructions and curriculum tools. [ii] 

Source: Center for Tech and Civic Life

Younger Kids

Fun activities can introduce younger kids to the idea of voting and to show them that voting is fun and important! To view, click here. [iii]

END NOTES

[i] CIRCLE, Growing Voters: 18 Ways Youth Under 18 Can Contribute to Elections

[ii] Crossing the Divide

[iii] Moms Rising- Crafts, activities, and ideas to celebrate voting with your kids

Lights on Afterschool Planning Tool

To learn more about this event, sponsored by the Ever Forward Club, click here.

How Smartphones Are Impacting Young People

Source: www.unsplash.com

The issue of allowing smart phones in the classroom is being discussed across the country, and the response to this issue is an evolving story. In some cases, restrictions are being chosen by individual school districts and/or through state legislation. This blog is authored by Guest Blogger, Tim Whitaker, Executive Director at Mighty Writers.

Tim Whitaker

The number one book on the NYT nonfiction bestseller list for the last 23 weeks is titled "The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness." Bottom-line thesis of author Jonathan Haidt's runaway hit book?

Digital life — particularly the use of smartphones — is making kids deeply, intensely unhappy.

The addiction to smartphones — along with the obsession with Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and all their cybernated brethren — is leading to sleep deprivation, compulsive disorders and mental illness in general. All familiar, especially if you have a young person in your life and have witnessed obsessive digital use up close and personal.

Digital obsession is something we think a lot about at Mighty Writers. We see firsthand how cell phones pull kids away from their instructors, mentors and peers; how a buzzing alert in a pocket can distract a student from caring about what they're thinking or writing.

This month, at the start of the school year, we banned the use of cell phones in our after-school program. It's a small step, one adopted by the Los Angeles school district, but we think a necessary one.

Still, there's a part of us that can grow defensive on behalf of our young Mighty writers: Why pick on the kids? How many times have we grown-ups had an in-person conversation interrupted by a friend who feels it necessary to answer their cell phone — "Excuse me, this will only take a minute"? Or how many of us have picked up our phone to take a quick run through TikTok or Instagram and 45 minutes later find ourselves still scrolling through images and messages that are mostly instantly forgettable?

Digital life has affected us all, kids the most, fair to say, because their minds and viewpoints are still evolving. They need smart, insistent and kind guidance, none of which they're going to find on a screen. Author Haidt calls for societal and policy changes, including delaying smartphone use until high school.

So much to think about.

What goes unsaid is the double whammy of the times we're living in — where threats and assassination attempts are becoming commonplace, where schools have active shooter drills, where immigrants are demonized and unsupervised play for kids has been scrapped in many communities out of generalized fear. It's a lot. For kids, especially, for sure. We're in uncharted territory. It's why we desperately look to change the subject with words that could bring a smile.

MORE ABOUT...

Tim Whitaker began his career teaching fifth and sixth grade in Philadelphia before becoming a writer and editor. He was the editor of Philadelphia Weekly (1994-2008), and previously the editor of PhillySport and Pittsburgh magazines. Whitaker was a head writer at NBC Radio and has written for PBS, The New York Times, Washington Post and Philadelphia Inquirer. He was the executive producer of an award-winning audio documentary on the history of soul radio in Philadelphia and the author of the book “Crash: The Life and Times of Dick Allen.”

Mighty Writers is a nonprofit organization dedicated to "teaching kids to think clearly and write with clarity." They offer many writing programs such as Literary Arts Workshops and an Afterschool Academy. They evolved during the COVID pandemic and now offer multiple food distribution centers to low-income neighborhoods. Established in 2009, they serve communities in and around Philadelphia, PA; in Camden, Newark and Atlantic City, NJ; and in El Paso, Texas.

UPCOMING WEBINAR

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Youth Vote 2024: Voter Registration

Source: The League of Women Voters

By Sam Piha

Did you know that in many states young people can pre-register to vote at the age of 16-17? Student organizers and adult volunteers work collaboratively with schools, organizations and events to coordinate voter registration drives that target high school and college students. To learn more about organizing voter registration drive, click here. You can also share a video by young people on voter registration drives by clicking on the image below. 

Source: Our Time is Now: CA Pre-Registration PSA  

Bring Voter Registration to Your High School

“High schools are the most efficient and equitable system we have for getting young people registered, particularly the 40% who do not attend college.” [i]

Source: Ed Week

Paper and online registration drives can occur during classes, lunch periods, school assemblies, school orientation days, school club days, marches, etc. After students register, they are challenged to recruit other youth to register and/or to organize new registration drives and are encouraged to vote in every election. To learn more and access a guide for organizing a registration drive, click here.”

“We registered 103 students in 2.5 hours at one high school with the help of a student League member who attends the school and a social studies teacher and his students.” [ii] - member of the League of Women Voters of Henderson County (NC) 

“The Civics Center is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that empowers high school students to hold peer-to-peer voter registration events in their high schools. When students invite their peers into the democratic process, they build civic engagement, develop leadership skills and strengthen our democracy. We are committed to nonpartisanship and an inclusive spirit of voter registration. We also prioritize collaboration with school faculty and administration as well as local election officials.” 

Here are the process students will use to organize a voter registration event in your school:

1. Attend a 45-minute online workshop held by The Civics Center which outlines the importance of youth voter registration, the process of planning an event in your school, and how to register to vote and help others to register in your state. Find a workshop for your state on our website.

2. Gather volunteers from a club, honors society, class, or group of friends. 

“I organized a registration drive at my school all by myself. It wasn’t the best time of the year due to AP testing, but I was able to register 99 of my classmates. I also volunteered at other schools’ registration drives. I think we need to get a lot of young adults voting because then if politicians want to be re-elected, they will have to advocate for our views.” [iii] – Michael, high school student  

3. Coordinate with the school administration to pick one or more dates, times, and locations to hold a voter registration event. Voter registration is usually conducted either with tables and clipboards during a lunch period, or through student-led presentations in a homeroom, advisory, or class period.

4. Register your school on The Civics Center’s website listing an estimated date for the planned event and the name and email of a faculty sponsor.

5. Receive a toolkit, Democracy in a Box, free from The Civics Center before the event. Democracy in a Box is a starter kit that includes pens, clipboards, stickers, posters, candy, and more supplies to help make your event as easy as possible and fun for participants. We ship Democracy in a Box to the designated faculty sponsor to promote effective collaboration within the school. 

6. Acquire voter registration forms. We go over this process in the webinar training; in many states, this is as simple as printing a PDF. In some states, it’s simpler to use online voter registration.

7. Hold the voter registration event on the selected date(s) using the materials in Democracy in a Box, and report back the number of registrations to The Civics Center via email. 

8. Return the completed voter registration forms to your local elections official within 2-3 days of the event.” [iv]

“We plan to host registration events, and possibly even parties; on election day, we plan to go with teens who are voting for the first time and to make a big deal of it (e.g., ‘It’s my first-time voting’ hats or sashes).” – Rebecca Fabiano, Executive Director, FAB Youth Philly

NOTE: After registration, a Get Out the Vote campaign can begin. Students are reminded about upcoming candidate forums and elections. Youth are also encouraged to create social events such as Flash Mob Voting (meeting at one location and marching to a post office with mail-in ballots) and election night watch parties.

END NOTES
[i] The Civics Center, Our Purpose
[ii] League of Women Voters, The League Empowers Teens Through Youth Voter Registration Programs
[iii] Youth Voter Movement, About the Movement
[iv] The Civics Center, Bringing Voter Registration to Your High School

Lights on Afterschool Planning Tool

Looking at Riley’s outer world in ‘Inside Out 2′

Source: ©Pixar Animation Studios

Inside Out 2 is the follow-up to Disney and Pixar’s Inside Out. Below guest blogger, Naomi Schaefer Riley, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, reviews “Inside Out 2”. It was originally published on Deseret News. This sequel, which was recently released, takes place inside the head of Riley, a 13-year-old girl who has just hit puberty.

Naomi Schaefer Riley

As in the first installment, this movie includes the personified “emotion” characters of Joy, Sadness, Anger, Disgust and Fear living inside Riley’s brain. But now, thanks to raging hormones, presumably, those characters are joined by Anxiety, Envy, Ennui and Embarrassment. Anxiety is the main antagonist in the new movie, and that’s not surprising, given how many teens (and especially girls) are suffering under the weight of that feeling these days.

There are plenty of clever moments in the movie, which turns our metaphors about the brain into a physical landscape with a “sar-chasm” and the “stream of consciousness.” But the most brilliant moment comes when we find out that Anxiety has taken over Riley’s imagination and is now employing all the little creatures who used to come up with fun stories or ideas to draw sketches of all the terrible possibilities that could result from any of Riley’s actions. If you’ve ever talked to a teenager paralyzed by anxiety, this is exactly what it seems like. You can keep telling them that those things won’t happen — or that if they do, things will still be OK — but they seem to come up with new worst-case scenarios faster than you can argue with them.

It is worth taking note of what’s going on outside Riley’s head, too. Because while one shouldn’t underestimate the power of puberty to make adolescents behave strangely, that has actually been the case for some time. Adolescents today, though, are experiencing an unprecedented mental health crisis. What is happening now that’s new? Is there anything in Riley’s outer life worth our notice?

The first thing you might notice about Riley is that she’s an only child. There are no siblings to compete with or horse around with or tease. She is an A student and a precocious hockey player. She has experienced, from what we can tell, almost no failure in her life. Her parents’ lives revolve around her. They both tuck her in at night. They come to her hockey games, wearing team jerseys and cheering her on. When she goes off to a weekend hockey camp, her mother and father are not quite sure what to do with themselves.

Riley does have friends, but the main activity she does with her friends is play hockey. If Riley has free time, we don’t see it. We see her buried under piles of homework and we see her at the ice rink, but that’s about it. This is all a recipe for anxiety. Riley is under a lot of pressure to perform and has experienced almost no independence. Though her parents are constantly trying to reassure her that they will love her no matter what, it’s hard to be the focus of all that adult attention.

Source: ©Pixar Animation Studios

At one point in the movie, even Joy recognizes that the steps she is taking to help Riley — getting rid of all of her bad memories — are actually hurting her. Those moments, when Riley has been embarrassed or done something that disappoints her parents, actually — to borrow a phrase — build character. It is notable that the word “character” does not appear in the movie. There are beliefs and dreams and memories and a “sense of self,” but character — something traditionally thought of as being forged through adversity — is not part of the landscape. It is not that Riley doesn’t work hard. She clearly does. But she is working as hard as she can taking directions from adults. She is playing high-level organized sports.

Robert Pondiscio, my colleague at the American Enterprise Institute, recently defended the importance of organized sports for shaping young people — noting “competitive sports remain unabashedly old school. Kids are held directly accountable. You show up, work hard and perform, or else you sit; the scoreboard is the last word in accountability and resiliency.” But it is also hard to dismiss the complaint that these activities are completely adult-directed and consume time that kids in previous eras would have spent figuring out how to play and get along on their own.

A final note. Like just about every other 13-year-old, Riley has a smartphone. We see her using it to take selfies, but the coach at the hockey camp takes all the phones away at the beginning of the weekend (Go, coach!). If Riley has this much anxiety without a phone, imagine what she would be like if she were constantly checking one. It is perfect that the only emotion associated with her own device is Ennui. Because, frankly, ennui was really not an emotion associated with teenagers until fairly recently.

“For elementary kids and tweens especially, the movie has proved to be an exceptionally great starting point for important conversations about anxiety and self-esteem. ‘These films are just such a great segue for talking about all the different kinds of feelings and really allowing for and normalizing them,’ says Jenn Wert, a parenting coach and educator who specializes in family relationships and communication.” [1]

For Gen Xers like me, and the Boomers before us, teen years may have been filled with the extremes of joy and sadness and anger, the deep desire for independence and especially risk taking. But rarely was it boring. What would it take to get us back to that kind of childhood? Turning our world inside out.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS FOR 'INSIDE OUT 2'

• “Who was your favorite character in Inside Out 2? Why did you like them?
• Can you tell me about a time when you felt like one of the characters in the movie?
• What do you think caused Riley to start changing what she believed about herself?
• Have you ever felt emotions that surprised you?
• Can you think of a time when you felt a mix of different emotions at the same time?
• How did Riley act when her anxiety was at the ‘control panel’? What did you think about how she responded to that feeling?
• If you were to make a movie like this with you as the main character instead of Riley, what other emotion might you add?” [2]

RESOURCES

• Previous LIAS Blog on Inside Out 1  

VIDEOS

• Webinar Recording: The Science Behind ‘Inside Out 2’
• ‘Inside Out 2’ Official Trailer
• Best Scenes in Inside Out 2 Headquarters! 

MORE ABOUT…

Naomi Schaefer Riley is a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, where she focuses on child welfare and foster care issues. Specifically, her work analyzes the role of faith-based and community organizations in changing the foster care and adoption services landscape. She also studies how race, class and family structure affect foster care placement and services and the impact of the drug crisis on child welfare. She is concurrently a senior fellow at the Independent Women’s Forum. She is the author of “No Way to Treat a Child: How the Foster Care System, Family Courts, and Racial Activists Are Wrecking Young Lives,” among other books.

The American Enterprise Institute is a public policy think tank dedicated to defending human dignity, expanding human potential, and building a freer and safer world. The work of our scholars and staff advances ideas rooted in our belief in democracy, free enterprise, American strength and global leadership, solidarity with those at the periphery of our society, and a pluralistic, entrepreneurial culture.

The Greater Good Science Center is unique in its commitment to both science and practice: Not only do they sponsor groundbreaking scientific research into social and emotional well‐being, they help people apply this research to their personal and professional lives.

 

END NOTES

[1] Ashley Austrew, A parent’s guide to ‘Inside Out 2’: What to know before seeing the movie with kids
[2] Tamar Davis, Talking to Kids About ‘Inside Out 2’