21CCLC Blog

Out-of-school time programs provide incredible value to our communities and those within them, especially for working parents in need of an affordable, safe solution for their children in the summer months. These programs go above and beyond the typical childcare environment, offering opportunities for engagement and a myriad of enrichment opportunities.

Even though 21^st Century Community Learning Centers (21CCLC), or after-school programs, serve a great purpose for school-aged children and teenagers, funding for these programs has been on the docket for removal several times in the last few years. That is why it is vitally important to create a sustainable program through funding diversity.

With millions of children currently enrolled in after-school programs across the country, there is a great deal of data to manage and report to the federal government. A portion of an after-school program funding can be dedicated to administration, such as after-school software system data management.

Whether your 21st Century Community Learning Center (21CCLC) program is funded for the foreseeable future or not, it can still be a challenge to expand on current program offerings or keep lights on due to budgetary limitations. However, with some creativity and even some fundraising efforts, it’s possible to not only expand current offerings, but also plan for future program offerings. Here are some ways to cultivate your 21CCLC program while still staying within reasonable budgetary boundaries.

TransACT’s AfterSchool21 Program Data Management Software team is joining the National AfterSchool Association (NAA) to celebrate the professionals that are at the heart of after-school programs during “Afterschool Professionals Appreciation Week” April 24-28, 2023.

Funding is always top-of-mind for program directors and managers, and for good reason: without funding, there can be no program to direct or manage. Though it’s usually the exception rather than the rule, after school programs do sometimes lose a major source of funding.

As some after-school programs can attest, funding can be unpredictable. While many 21CCLC programs are able to secure funding for a period of 3-5 years, some are unable to secure large dedicated grants in perpetuity. This could be attributed to a lack of funding at the federal level, inadequate record keeping, poor performance results, or a host of other reasons.