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All too often, employers are asking questions that could help retain a valued employee after the employee is already out the door.

I recently got into an argument with a white cis male Linkedin business "influencer" about the booklist he released that, amongst the over 100 titles, included almost no women or BIPOC authors. Of course, his responses were defensive: "I read what comes across my desk." Agh.

Millions of dollars are being pumped into school and out-of-school time (OST) programs by the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) fund, allowing those programs to make enormous headway into addressing learning loss caused by the pandemic. Schools are tasked with ensuring that all students, both in classrooms and in out-of-school time programs, can access effective learning as well as have support for social, emotional, and mental health needs. Specific to afterschool, it addresses planning and implementing activities related to supplemental afterschool programs and summer learning enrichment to address learning loss. 

Over the last 20 years, Out-of-School Time (OST) has progressed with research, practice, and policies related to program quality, yet workforce stability, recruitment, and retention of direct-service workers continues to be a challenge. The National AfterSchool Association (NAA) recently launched the Thriving Out-of-School Workforce Initiative focused on creating a strong and valued profession. In talking about the initiative, Angelica Portillo, NAA’sDirector of Advocacy and Workforce Initiatives, shared, "Moving this invaluable workforce forward is necessary for upholding our commitment to equity, access, and quality."