UPCOMING AYPF EVENTS

Webinar – Replicating Success: CUNY’s Accelerated Study in Associate Programs (ASAP) (Thursday, March 19, 2015)

Webinar – Strengthening Measures Of College And Career Readiness And Success: State Longitudinal Data Systems, Governance, & Privacy (Monday, March 23, 2015)

Forum – Building Postsecondary Pathways For Opportunity Youth (Friday, March 27, 2015)

Forum – The New Forgotten Half and Research Directions to Support Them (Friday, May 1, 2015)
AYPF EVENT DETAILS

Webinar – Replicating Success: CUNY’s Accelerated Study in Associate Programs (ASAP) (Thursday, March 19, 2015 2:00PM – 3:15PM) With two- and three-year graduation rates for students with some developmental needs more than double those of similar comparison group students, CUNY ASAP has been hailed as the most successful community college reform. Join AYPF and MDRC to learn about CUNY ASAP, a structured degree pathway program for associate degree-seeking students, and its replications efforts. Presenters include Donna Linderman, University Associate Dean for Student Success Initiatives, CUNY; Sue Scrivener, Senior Associate, MDRC; and Brett Visger, Associate Vice Chancellor, Institutional Collaboration & Completion, Ohio Board of Regents.

Webinar – Strengthening Measures of College and Career Readiness and Success: State Longitudinal Data Systems, Governance, & Privacy (Monday, March 23, 2015, 3:30PM – 5:00PM) This is the second of a two-part webinar series hosted jointly with the College and Career Readiness and Success Center at AIR (CCRS Center) aiming to draw connections between the growing understanding of how states can more accurately measure college and career readiness and relevant state policy considerations. (The first webinar may be found here.) This webinar will discuss the progress of state longitudinal data systems and the governance structures developed to ensure proper use.  Presenters include Laura Jimenez, CCRS Center; Dorothyjean Cratty, AIR; Elizabeth Daubney, DQC; Rachel Anderson, DQC; Jean Osumi, Hawai’i Data Exchange; and Melissa Beard, Washington Education and Research Data Center.

Forum – Building Postsecondary Pathways For Opportunity Youth (Friday, March 27, 2015, 12:00PM – 1:30PM) According to research by Georgetown’s Center for Education and the Workforce, it is predicted that by 2020 approximately 65% of all available jobs will require some postsecondary education or training.   Yet, there are young people who are being excluded from these opportunities because they are not on a pathway that includes education and workforce training that will adequately prepare them for these jobs. Join us for a discussion following the release of AYPF’s reports on Postsecondary Pathways for Opportunity Youth in Connecticut and Michigan.  The AYPF staff will be joined by with leading practitioners and advocates from these states to discuss the challenges and opportunities of this work.  AYPF will offer a brief summary of the reports and key takeaways for a national audience and our panelists will engage a discussion around their work, policy recommendations, and strategies moving forward. Presenters include Michelle Corey, Vice President of Programs, Michigan’s Children, Kristin Harringon, ‎Senior Director of Talent Enhancement, Kinexus Workforce Development Division, and Bob Rath, President & CEO, Our Piece of the Pie.

Forum – The New Forgotten Half and Research Directions to Support Them (Friday, May 1, 2015, 12:00PM – 2:00PM)

Join AYPF and the William T. Grant Foundation for the release of The New Forgotten Half and Research Directions to Support Them. In 1988, the landmark study The Forgotten Half: Pathways to Success for America’s Youth and Young Families drew national attention to low-income, disconnected youth and their struggle to lead successful adult lives. Now, 25 years later, we are faced with a new challenge. Many young people who enroll in college fail to complete their studies and attain a degree, and these youth often fare no better in the labor market than those with only a high school diploma. These young people are the new Forgotten Half.

The forum will include findings from the study, and include a two-part panel. Panelists will include Betsy Brand, Executive Director, AYPF, Adam Gamoran, President, WT Grant Foundation, James Rosenbaum, Professor, Northwestern University, and Barbara Veazey, President, West Kentucky Community and Technical College. The second panel will feature respondents to the issues raised during the event, and include Josh Wyner, Executive Director, College Excellence Program, Aspen Institute, and Gardner Carrick, Vice President for Strategic Initiatives, Manufacturing Institute, National Association of Manufacturers.

2015 SUMMER INTERNSHIP

AYPF is currently hiring for our summer internship position. Duties include:

• Working with program staff to collect data for briefing papers, fact sheets, and publications.
• Researching promising practices to help identify potential programs to highlight in publications, forums, and study tours.
• Tracking and analyzing effective youth policies and practices in states and districts.
• Assisting with communications to key contacts on Capitol Hill.

Internships at AYPF are substantive, structured, and interns are integral members of our team. For more details about the position and how to apply, please visit ouremployment page.

AYPF PUBLICATIONS AND RESOURCES

Please visit our YouTube channel at http://www.youtube.com/amyouthpolicyforum for video clips of events, interviews and more.

Forum For Thought Blog The Forum for Thought blog is operated by the American Youth Policy Forum, and highlights diverse points of view and information from the intersection of policy, practice and research.

• AYPF Executive Director Betsy Brand explains the value of afterschool programs and expanded learning in preparing students for college and career.
• A two-part series by Erin Russ explores how it’s never too late for youth transitioning out of the juvenile justice system, and explores some promising programs and policies to help these youth lead successful adult lives.

Click here to view all AYPF publications

Click here to find all briefs and reports

RECOMMENDED READING AND RESOURCES

Check these out – recommended reading from the AYPF staff:

MDRC Improving Outcomes for New York City’s Disconnected Youth In the summer of 2013, MDRC conducted an implementation study of five Young Adult Literacy (YAL) sites in order to explore factors that facilitate or challenge successful program implementation. This report presents the findings, which are largely based on an analysis of qualitative data from staff interviews, participant focus groups, and observations of classrooms and internships, as well as a review of program participation data.

William T. Grant Foundation Disparities in School Discipline: The Complex Face of Inequality in Education Russell Skiba, director of the Equity Project, explores the racial dynamics of inequities in school discipline. In this blog post, Skiba makes the case for open, frank discussions about the role that racial discrimination can play in disproportionate rates of school expulsions and suspensions.

Brown Center On Education Policy at Brookings Measuring and Understanding Education Advocacy This report sheds light on that question by examining the influence and approach of advocacy organizations in three states that recently enacted or considered school reform legislation: Louisiana, Tennessee, and North Carolina.

Research For Action Multiple Measures for College Placement There is growing recognition that assessing students using a single, standardized measure may contribute to this misplacement, and that more accurate decisions can be achieved using Multiple Measures of student readiness.  This three-part report examines how states, systems, and institutions are approaching the use of multiple measures for student placement.

CompetencyWorks Maximizing Competency Education and Blended Learning, Insights from Experts The paper is based on a two-day conversation with twenty-three incredibly insightful people who work in competency education, personalized learning, and blended learning – and the paper only captures a small portion of the rich conversation.

KnowledgeWorks Building Consensus & Momentum: A Policy and Political Landscape for K-12 Competency Education In KnowledgeWorks’ first-ever e-book, authors address three policy areas to focus on in building an educational system that supports competency education. By focusing on these areas, states would be given the flexibility needed to innovate, evaluate and build systems that positively impact student achievement.