Running a Program

In this section, you will find valuable resources for starting and operating an out-of-school program. Take advantage of these resources to jump-start your effort and make your ongoing operations a bit smoother.

Below are links to manuals, websites, and tools that can help simplfy your efforts for getting started:

How to Start

How to Start a Before School Program
This 48-page manual from Build the Out-of-School Time Network (BOSTnet) includes start-up information, sample documents including parent surveys in English and Spanish, flyers, proposals, job descriptions, staff application and interview questions, policies, budget scenarios, and registration packets.

Starting an Out-of-School Time Program
Also from BOSTnet, this 100-page, start-up manual includes information on assessment, planning and licensing, contact information and sample documents. Available in both hardcopy and on disk.

Starting a Program “Tool Kits”
A collection of online toolboxes and resources from Afterschool.gov.

Sample MOA between School & Program
This document maps out an agreement between an OST program and a school. Microsoft Word version.

Licensing

Department of Early Education and Care (formerly Massachusetts Office of Child Care Services and the Early Learning Services Division)
This office issues licenses for programs that care for children. This website offers information about obtaining and maintaining a child care license and outlines the first steps: contacting a regional OCCS office, meeting with a licensor, testing the building for lead and/or arranging for a physical access consultant to review physical facility modifications.

Massachusetts Licensure Standards
This 47-page section of the Code of Massachusetts Regulations (102 CMR 7) applies to Group Day Care and School-Age Child Care Programs and offers information on licensing, renewal, transportation, space, nutrition, curriculum and more.

National Health and Safety Performance Standards
The National Resource Center for Health and Safety in Child Care provides these guidelines for out-of-home childcare programs through its website.

Staffing

Connect and Serve
Connect and Serve is an online tool for organizations to recruit volunteers and post volunteer opportunities.

Criminal Offender Record (CORI)
The Criminal History Systems Board offers access to CORI checks for non-criminal justice agencies such as schools, day care centers, youth athletic coaches, and municipal government agencies.

Volunteer Match
This site offers non-profits the opportunity to conduct online recruitment of volunteers for their organization.

Operations

Everything you Need to Know about Transportation
Links from Afterschool.gov provide tips on creative use of limited resources to support transportation of after-school participants and everything else you need to know.

Increasing Family and Parent Engagement in After-School
In this document, The After-School Corporation (TASC) provides a guide for engaging parents in after-school programs. TASC explains the importance of engaging families, offers advice and materials for effective outreach to parents, and highlights examples of successful family engagement methods.

A Resource Guide for Planning and Operating After-School Programs (2nd edition)
This guide was developed by Southwest Educational Development Laboratory (SEDL) as a resource for the planning and operation of after-school programs. It offers a list of resources in the areas of managing programs, effective communication and marketing, program development and evaluation.

Capacity Development Indicators Resource Kit
This kit developed by UNDP and GEF is a capacity development indicator resource kit for the effective management of programs.

Participation Tracking Systems

Cayen Systems
Cayen Systems develops and supports databases and provides technical assistance for non-profits and schools in order to help them better manage their data. Their web-based software streamlines data management for school day, after school programs, and non-profit administrators, helping them save time, better organize resources, have access to accurate and complete information.

Kids Care Center
Kids Care Center is a secure web-based application that simplifies record management for childcare programs. Kids Care Center seeks to offer the necessary tools for effectively managing data regarding children, programming, staff and facilities thereby allowing programs to spend more time focusing on children.

Kid Trax
TraxSolutions is web-based software used to help community-based organizations and after school programs track time and attendance. They can also use the software to more effectively measure and manage administrative elements and evaluate outcomes.


CitySpan
Offers a variety of participation tracking systems including the following:

Youth Services.net
YouthServices.net is web-based software that assists programs in collecting data, and managing program services and evaluation needs to allow more time to focus on youth needs.

Cityspan 21CCLC
Cityspan 21st CCLC is software that allows users to efficiently manage data and to automatically generate required 21st Century Annual Performance Review (APR) reports.

Cityspan SES
Cityspan Supplemental Educational Services aids school districts, SES providers and educators to automate their recording, billing and evaluating services.

Cityspan Gear Up
Cityspan Gear Up helps school districts and their partners track and evaluate the progress of students participating in the Gear Up program and houses all information associated with a student's academic achievement. It also tracks the involvement of their support network.

EZ Reports
EZReports is a web-based software that helps After School Programs streamline their data collection, monitoring and reporting.

Nutrition

After School Snack Program
Qualifying school-based after-school programs may be eligible to receive funding through the Boston Public School Snack Program.

Child Nutrition Programs
The Commonwealth's Department of Education website explains food reimbursement programs.

Food Links
This comprehensive list of links points providers to many available resources supporting food and snack programs for out-of-school time projects across the country.

Project Bread: Child Hunger Initiative
Project Bread in Massachusetts can help programs institute snacks and receive reimbursement for snacks served in after-school, before-school and summer programs.

USDA Publication on Food Reimbursement Programs with a Nutritional Guide
This link downloads a United States Department of Agriculture publication explaining federal food reimbursement programs with a nutritional guide.

Technology

TechSoup
A site “written by experts for a nonprofit audience” devoted to technological information. They also sell donated and discounted technology products at TechSoup Stock.

Special Populations

Disabled Children Inclusion: Institute for Community Inclusion
This site offers resources and training to support inclusion for disabled children in after-school programs.