In a bid to put a new vision of out-of-school time into practice, the C.S. Mott Foundation has announced plans to provide $4 million in support to community-school district partnerships in 10 cities.
The Flint, Mich.-based foundation is working to implement its “New Day for Learning” idea, which envisions a seamless, expanded education experience for children that extends past traditional school hours and includes projects outside the classroom. (“Adding More Time for Learning,” Sept. 24, 2008.)
Some of the foundation’s support will come in the form of grants made directly to two school district-community partnerships. But most will come in the form of coordinated technical assistance from an array of other organizations and consultants funded by the philanthropy, said An-Me Chung, the Mott program officer overseeing the initiative.
The two Mott grants announced last week are to San Francisco and Providence, R.I., each for $500,000 over three years.
The other eight community-school district partnerships in the “New Day for Learning” initiative are in Atlanta; Chicago; Denver; Charleston, S.C.; Flint, Mich.; Omaha, Neb.; Peekskill, N.Y., and St. Paul, Minn.
All 10 sites will receive a combined estimated $3 million in technical assistance with research, policy development, communications, and professional development from groups including the National League of Cities, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Institute for a Competitive Workforce, the National Governors Association, the National Conference of State Legislatures, the George Lucas Educational Foundation, Education Sector, New Visions for Public Schools, and the National Center for Summer Learning at Johns Hopkins University, Ms. Chung said.
