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ERIC Number: ED505309
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2009
Pages: 135
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1097-3125
EISSN: N/A
Ready for Prime Time: Implementing a Formal Afterschool Quality Improvement System by Prime Time Palm Beach County, Inc.
Spielberger, Julie; Lockaby, Tracey; Mayers, Leifa; Guterman, Kai
Chapin Hall Center for Children
This is the fourth report of a process evaluation of Palm Beach County Prime Time, Inc., an intermediary organization dedicated to improving the quality of afterschool programs, by Chapin Hall at the University of Chicago. It covers the 2007-2008 program year, which was the inaugural year of Prime Time's formal Quality Improvement System (QIS) for the county. Sixty-four providers across the county participated in the first year of the QIS, representing three main categories of programs: (1) Thirty-nine afterschool programs funded by the Children's Services Council (CSC) required to participate in the QIS as part of their funding, most of which had participated in the pilot and were familiar with the QIS; (2) Ten middle school programs, both community based and school based, which included a few that were new to the system and several that participated in the QIS pilot; and (3) Sixteen directors of afterschool programs at selected elementary schools that had not previously participated in the QIS. The report concludes that Prime Time's efforts to develop a comprehensive quality improvement system for Palm Beach County, which includes standards and assessment, a range of professional development strategies, curricular resources, and networking opportunities, have yielded a number of important lessons about the process of program improvement. Prime Time is strengthening resources for responding to barriers to professional development common to many out-of-school system-building initiatives, including staff turnover, lack of time, and financial and policy constraints. In addition to the need for system flexibility, the following recommendations are presented for building on first-year success of the QIS: (1) Ensure sufficient communication about the QIS process, especially at the beginning, for new participants; (2) Reconsider the current procedures by which program directors new to the process receive their scores reports; (3) Periodically facilitate meetings with senior-level staff of programs participating in the QIS; (4) Improve communication among all participants involved in the peer coaching process; and (5) As new programs come into the QIS, pay close attention to quality advising and peer coaching processes and increase quality advisors' and peer coaches' caseloads to make sure staff is sufficient to support the quality improvement process. Three appendixes are included: (1) Prime Time's 2007-2008 QIS Roll-out Plan; (2) 2008 Interview Guide for Program Directors; and (3) Emerging Themes in Directors' Interviews. (Contains 23 footnotes, 1 figure and 7 tables.)
Chapin Hall Center for Children. 1313 East 60th Street, Chicago, IL 60637. Tel: 773-753-5900; Fax: 773-753-5940; Web site: http://www.chapinhall.org
Publication Type: Reports - Descriptive; Tests/Questionnaires
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: Chapin Hall at the University of Chicago
Identifiers - Location: Florida
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A