SEL and Character Building Program Practices

By Sam Piha

There is great agreement that social emotional learning skills are very beneficial in preparing youth for success. While we hear a lot about the “why” of SEL and character building, little is heard about the application (the “what” and “how”) within expanded learning (afterschool) programs. Expanded learning practices need to be uplifted so that the field can begin to see what good character/SEL practices look like.

Source: CASEL

We were interested in how programs promote these skills, so we put out an announcement asking afterschool programs to submit a program practice. We compiled these practices into a paper entitled, “Promising Activities, Practices and Resources: Promoting SEL and Character Skills in Expanded Learning Programs”. Each submission included a description of the submitting organization, a contact person within the organization, and a description of the practice or activity (i.e. purpose, time needed/frequency, target audience, and supporting resources).

The concept of social emotional learning has come to a frenzy in the past couple of years. Where does afterschool fit in to all of this? You would hope that we’d be right at the forefront. We’ve been doing this for years we know how to do it. – Karen Pittman, Forum for Youth Investment

Below are some practices that programs submitted:

Source: Temescal Associates

EDUCARE- Guided Visualizations. Visualizations are guided around a particular theme. There are a variety of mindfulness and centering practices they enjoy using and have found valuable. An example theme: Gratefulness. Youth close their eyes and review on an imaginary movie screen, images of who and what they are grateful for or appreciate - friends, family members, their health, people who support or inspire them, opportunities they have at school or elsewhere, etc.

Source: Ever Forward Club

EVER FORWARD CLUB- Mask Making. Youth are given a handout and asked to follow 3 steps anonymously. They are also asked to keep their eyes on their own paper. 1. Draw a mask on the left side. 2. Write 3 words on the front of the mask that represent qualities they let people see. 3. Write 3 words on the back of the mask that represent the things they don’t usually let people see. Adult leaders collect the masks and then have a few volunteers read a few of the responses anonymously. Youth are then invited to share how it felt hearing about the front and back of the masks of their peers. This would be a good time to discuss their commonalities and differences. Deeper processes can be created depending on the level of safety that has been generated in the room.

Source: LA's BEST

LA’S BEST- Sanford Harmony Cards. These cards provide engaging questions and activities to explore with a "buddy". The students then get to know each other and connect, which prepares them to handle future challenges and conflicts and opportunities to collaborate in a meaningful and constructive way. Sanford Harmony also provides recommendations of how and why to pair students together. The "Meet Up" strategy provides a way to strengthen a program's daily routine by incorporating practices that allow the entire group of students to explore how they treat each other and how they communicate with one another.

CALSAC- Regular Check Ins. This is an intentional space created for staff and youth to share how they are showing up in that space. Participants typically sit or stand in a circle during the check in. Next, a volunteer is asked to start and then chooses a direction for participants to follow. The information shared allows everyone in the room to understand what may be going on for them and honor that each individual may be coming into the space with varying life experiences. This allows everyone to see each other more wholly and create safety for people to be authentic in the space. It is recommended to create an opportunity for everyone to lead the check-in. (From Temescal Associates: It is recommended that each speaker holds a talking piece, such as a feather or item chosen by the group. The talking piece is held by the person speaking and then passed around the circle. Those not holding the talking piece are engaged in active listening.)

Source: Greater Good Science Center

GREATER GOOD SCIENCE CENTER- Gratitude Letter. In this activity, youth are guided to complete the Gratitude Letter practice, where they write a letter of thanks and then try to deliver it in person. To introduce the activity, the following script may be helpful: 'Most everyone enjoys thanks for a job well done or for a favor done for a friend, and most of us remember to say “thank you” to others. But sometimes our “thank you” is said so casually or quickly that it is nearly meaningless.' In this activity, you will have the opportunity to express your gratitude in a very thoughtful manner. Think of the people—parents, friends, coaches, teammates, and so on—who have been especially kind to you but whom you have never properly thanked. Choose one person you could meet individually for a face-to-face meeting in the next week. Your task is to write a gratitude letter (a letter of thanks) to this individual and deliver it in person. The letter should be specific about what he or she did that affected your life. It is important that you meet him or her in person. Don’t tell this person, however, about the purpose of this meeting. This activity is much more fun when it is a surprise to the person you are thanking.
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The Future of Afterschool

By Sam Piha

As we look forward, we asked several national afterschool leaders to share their thoughts on the future of afterschool. Below are some of their responses.

Photo Credit: NHP Foundation

Q: When considering the future of the afterschool movement, what challenge do you see ahead and how should afterschool stakeholders respond to this challenge? 

Pedro Noguera,
UCLA 

Pedro Noguera: The primary challenge facing those who recognize the importance of after school learning is to make sure that what we offer to children is consistently of high quality. If we want to have an impact on academic and developmental outcomes, quality will be essential.

Dale Blyth,
University of MN

Dale Blyth: In my view, the future holds two major challenges for our field -- how to resource it and how to build the capacity and expertise of the work force. The first will require us to more directly meet the challenge of getting and better using data on outcomes, especially social-emotional outcomes, to both improve what we do and to make the case for resources to do it well. The second requires us to challenge each other, to expect more of ourselves and our staff with respect to quality process and intentional practices that move beyond activity management.  

Eric Gurna,
LA's BEST

Eric Gurna: I think our biggest challenge is always to help people to see the critical value of what we do. One way to respond to that is by investing in quality evaluation, so we can show the evidence of tangible outcomes. But equally important is that we engage others to tell our story. It's not enough that leaders in the field are vocal about the importance of the after school movement - we need prominent elected officials, business and civic leaders, artists, athletes and celebrities to speak up as well. 

Another challenge we face in California is the silos we work in, usually based on funding streams. If we can reach across these arbitrary boundaries and build solidarity with everyone who cares about our most vulnerable kids and families, we can raise the profile of the work and create more integrated support systems. I believe we need to collaborate more closely with other closely related fields - early childhood education, juvenile justice, child welfare, etc., so we can go beyond competing for funds and attention and build a movement to create a more child-centered culture.

Chris Smith,
Boston After School & Beyond

Chris Smith: Stakeholders should see change as an opportunity to refresh its appeal and reveal a sector that is both unified in its values and equipped with convincing evidence that a diverse approach to helping young people is also a resilient, adaptable, and scalable one.

Q: As afterschool programs evolve, what do you think are important topics or program innovations that we should be thinking about in the future? 

Dale Blyth: From my perspective, the programs that will grow and succeed in the future are those that have intentional social-emotional learning processes and outcomes they work toward and the types of people who can live them as well as excite youth in topical content areas. These programs may or may not have specific content areas such as the arts or STEM but they will definitely have deliberate ways they work with youth to develop a range of competencies. Content may be king in schools but it should only be a vehicle for good youth development - not the destination.


Eric Gurna: Honestly I think that innovation is overrated. We have so many tried and true practices and programs that are woefully under-resourced. While precious resources are focused on the next new thing, the next pilot project that will likely never achieve scale, we limp along trying to sustain evidence-based practices that have big impact when executed with quality. That said, we are embracing trauma-informed practice, and are engaging in new collaborations to enable LA's BEST to improve and expand how we cultivate emotional health and overall wellness for all our communities. That's exciting and important work, as relevant as it could be in today's social and political climate.

Chris Smith: We should consider the skills that are at the intersection of education, youth development, and college and career readiness. We will find that we share priorities with those outside of the afterschool sector. Taking a step back to consider the long-term outcomes of our work will prompt us to be creative in organizing where, when, and with whom young people are learning. It will open up new alliances and require us to examine how well we are doing and what we need to do to get even better.   


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Pedro Noguera, PhD 
is Distinguished Professor of Education
 at the UCLA Graduate School of Education & Information Studies. 

Dale Blyth, Ph.D. is Extension Professor Emeritus and Sr. Research Fellow, Center for Applied Research & Educational Improvement College of Education and Human Development at the University of Minnesota.

Eric Gurna is President & CEO of LA's BEST After School Enrichment Program.

Chris Smith is Executive Director of Boston After School & Beyond.

Let's Welcome Back Eric Gurna, LA's BEST New President & CEO

By Sam Piha

Sam Piha

Eric Gurna returns to LA's BEST and his old stomping ground to serve as President & CEO of LA's BEST, one of the largest and most influential afterschool initiatives in the country. LA's BEST was founded by Carla Sanger, who was a strong leader in California and across the country, helping to propel the afterschool movement.

Eric has been a long-time friend and colleague and we are excited to have him back on the West Coast. Below, we asked Eric a few questions about his transition to LA's BEST. You can learn more about Eric by clicking here.

Eric Gurna
President & CEO
LA's BEST

Q: Welcome back to California. Can you say a little bit about your roots in California and with LA’s BEST? 
A: Thank you! I definitely consider myself a California boy. While I was born in New York and have lived on the East Coast for many years, I moved to Oakland, CA when I was nine years old, and graduated from public high school and university here. My family still lives in the Bay Area, so even when I’ve been living in the East I’ve always been out West on a regular basis. 

I moved to Los Angeles shortly after finishing graduate school in New York City, in 1998. I met with a few people in the youth development field and all of them mentioned LA’s BEST, so I knew I had to learn more. I joined the organization as Director of Staff Development and though I only worked in that position for a couple of years, I was lucky enough to be around for one of the first major organizational growth periods, and gained incredible experience being part of a team that was dedicated to increasing access and the scale of the program, while maintaining the spirit, culture and values that had made the program great to begin with. I continued working with the LA’s BEST team over the years from the outside, assisting with staff development, curriculum and other program resources.

Q: You created a very successful organization in New York, Development Without Limits, providing training and curriculum for afterschool programs. Can you say a little about why you left this to take over the reins at LA’s BEST? 
A: This was too huge of an honor, and opportunity, to pass up. I loved the work I was doing with the Development Without Limits (DWL) team, and am thrilled that the organization is in great hands and continues to thrive. Now I am so excited to get to work with the LA’s BEST team and all its partners, and the chance to lead the organization through this transition, and into the future. 

For the past fifteen years with DWL, I have worked with dozens of youth organizations and programs across the country in all kinds of settings, so I also see this new role as a chance to incorporate some of the innovative practices I’ve seen into LA’s BEST. Really what I’m most excited about, and what made me feel it was worth it to uproot my family and move across the country, is the LA’s BEST team – it is in amazing group of people who put young people and community at the center of everything they do.

Q: You are stepping into some large shoes. I am referring to the shoes of Carla Sanger. Can you say something about her influence on the field? 

Carla Sanger
Founder & Former CEO
LA's BEST

A: Throughout this transition, it is amazing how many times people mention Carla’s shoes! Carla’s influence on the field is tremendous - she has been a key part of the driving force that has created statewide and local afterschool infrastructure and resources in California that just don’t exist (yet!) in other states. 

She’s been a force nationally as well – bringing the fresh air of honest dialogue, humility and inspiration to every conversation and collaboration she is a part of. But I think her biggest influence is on the many individuals she has worked with – she’s shown that you can be courageous and outspoken without having a large ego, that you can be sensitive enough to care deeply about how young people feel, but fierce enough to fight the good fight when you have to. For me personally, she has been my most important mentor, and someone I admire endlessly. To my good fortune, I still have her number, and I plan to use it as needed!

Q: What do you see as the next step for LA’s BEST? 
A: I don’t know yet! I only just started in this role February 17, and I don’t come into this with a preconceived notion of what changes are needed, or next steps. I need to learn a lot more about how things work – and maybe what isn’t working so well internally and in the field, before I can have that sort of plan. I do know that I want us always to be striving to create even warmer environments for kids, to listen closer to young people and to each other, and to be more creative in how we do so much with relatively little. In terms of the field, I’d love for LA’s BEST to connect with other afterschool programs more, to collaborate and build us all stronger.

Q: Could you comment on the LIAS learning principles?
A: I’ve been a fan of the LIAS learning principles from the beginning. I think they are a clear and succinct articulation of the values of most out of school time programs, and I think providing that language is very helpful as youth professionals interact with all the important stakeholders, and need to express what we are about and what we do. 

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Eric Gurna joined LA’s BEST as CEO and President in February 2015. LA’s BEST Afterschool Enrichment Program, is a partnership between the City of Los Angeles, the Los Angeles Unified School District and the private sector that operates in 195 schools. 

Previous to his arrival, Eric founded DWL in 2000 with the vision of supporting youth programs and schools to improve the quality of their work and create more youth-centered environments. There, he hosted the podcast, Please Speak Freely: Honest Conversations About Youth Development and Education, during which he interviews leaders and practitioners to shed light on key issues and explore different perspectives. Before founding DWL, Eric served as Director of Staff Development for LA´s BEST. He cofounded the LA Partnership for After School Education. Eric also worked for Educators for Social Responsibility and Rheedlen Centers for Children and Families (now Harlem Children’s Zone).

Eric holds a B.A. in Political Science from the University of California at Irvine and an M.S. in Urban Policy Analysis and Management from the New School for Social Research. He lives in Los Angeles, CA with his wife Elia, who is an artist, their two children, Rosalie and Rafael, and their two cats.