Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) impacts approximately 1 in 44 children in the United States. Common characteristics of ASD are marked deficits in communication and social connectedness. As autistic children approach adolescence, there is a lack of interventions available to them. Mentoring can provide adolescents with a relationship that…

While social skills training allows students to acquire social skills, often it does not enhance their performance of those skills outside the social skills training context. A withdrawal design was used to determine if a modified Tootling intervention could enhance at-risk, first-grade students' performance of two recently trained social skills…

Background: This practice paper exemplifies a systematic approach used to learn about existing mental well-being programs for youth 11-14 years to inform curriculum development for after-school settings. Methods: We reviewed 3389 mental well-being programs from publicly accessed databases and conducted a content analysis using inductive and…

Afterschool programs inspire kids to learn, help them build foundational skills like the ability to communicate effectively and think critically, and give parents peace of mind knowing that their child is in a safe space with caring adults. For more than 25 years, 21st Century Community Learning Centers have helped young people academically and…

In the United States, the dearth of quality expanded learning opportunities (ELO), such as afterschool and summer programs, has long been recognized as a national concern (DeKanter et al., 2000). The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated this problem, as expanded learning opportunities of all kinds became increasingly limited in spring 2020 (Carver &…

The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study is to explore how African American single mothers describe the efficacy and accessibility of afterschool enrichment programs for elementary school children from socio-economically challenged homes. This study will contribute to the gap in the literature with respect to African American single…

Cogent indicated prevention with young children at risk for early onset conduct problems needs to address multiple domains of influence in school and home settings. A multicontextual preventive intervention (MPI) spanning grades one and two was conducted in schools serving economically disadvantaged communities and evaluated separately for boys…

Background: Mental health is a priority for high schools, but extant programs often focus on symptom reduction rather than promoting adolescents' developmental assets. Objective: The goal of this study is to examine whether Art in Mind (AIM), a strengths-based after-school organized art activity tailored to fit the needs of adolescents with…

The after-school program is a crucial initiative for implementing the Double Reduction policy; however, prior research has not provided conclusive evidence on whether extended school hours contribute to students' cognitive and non-cognitive development or on which types of after-school services are more beneficial for student development. This…

After-school programs have been demonstrated or theorized to be associated with a wide variety of positive youth outcomes and have become a more widely-accepted aspect of the greater educational system. One of the most commonly-cited vehicles for these positive outcomes is relationships developed within the after-school program. This paper…

The increase in diagnoses of autism for elementary aged students paired with schools increasingly moving towards inclusive classroom models creates a challenge for general education teachers. This quantitative quasi-experimental study was designed to investigate the efficacy of an after school, explicit social skills intervention, and the impact…

This descriptive study explored the relationship between sustained attendance in high-quality 21st Century Community Learning Centers (CCLC)-- funded programs and key child outcomes. The key hypothesis was that high-quality programming is associated with the development of social and emotional skills, which in turn may be related to academic…

The Northern Triangle of Central America faces many challenges, including violence and crime. Young people are the most common victims as well as perpetrators of violence, especially gang-related violence. That is why Glasswing International is committed to providing children, adolescents, and youth with tools to prevent violence and opportunities…

Abundant research has covered the benefits of and barriers to partnerships between schools and community-based organizations (CBOs; Sanders, 2001; Valli et al., 2016). The aim is for schools and CBOs to come together to foster student growth, particularly during out-of-school time. If two independent organizations, such as a school and a nonprofit…

This paper describes the design and investigation of a high-school-affiliated esports program based on an enrichment learning model. In it, the authors detail the connections between esports and learning, self-reported impacts of the program and demographic differences among them, students' attitudes toward program features, and equity in results…