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The National AfterSchool Association develops each Convention with the goal of providing out-of-school time professionals the space to recuperate, share, and discover new ideas so that they may leave with restored passion for the vital work they do. NAA23 serves as the ultimate charging station for our people in the field. With over 50 workshops, community conversations, and leadership intensives — Convention will power human connections through transformational sessions like these five opportunities for inspired learning.

It’s hard to believe a year has passed since the National AfterSchool Association announced its first Director of Advocacy & Workforce Initiatives position. This is a critical role for the Association’s ramped-up efforts to elevate the job quality of out-of-school time career opportunities throughout the United States, and NAA found the perfect fit in Angelica Portillo. We first met Angelica in 2018 when she was honored with the Next Generation of Afterschool Leaders award by NAA as the Director of Advocacy at Dallas Afterschool. In a year at the national level of out-of-school time support for programs and professionals, Angelica has hurdled obstacles and pioneered initiatives head-on.

Recently, the Colorado Afterschool Partnership and the Colorado Department of Education hosted their inaugural statewide OST conference. The convening featured topics such as youth development, staffing, leadership, and partnerships. I was specifically invited to lead a session on Creating a Thriving OST Workforce. I then facilitated a conversation with 21CCLC grantees as they discussed the OST Job Design Framework and collaborated to design jobs that support program quality. As I listened to the discussions and asked participants to share, many of the same concerns and ideas were brought up.

Supporting out-of-school time (OST) professionals has always been an NAA priority. More in depth advocacy for a comprehensive overhaul of job quality in the field has been an NAA priority since 2020 and a focus point that inspired our Thriving Workforce Initiative. Since the launch of this project, we have hosted and joined national conversations about defining ‘good’ jobs, creating them, and increasing their quality across all sectors. Leading and participating in these discussions grants NAA the opportunity to partner with new organizations like the Families and Workers Fund to gather insight into current workforce advocacy efforts across the country.