The DAA Collective newsletter keeps Denver's afterschool community connected to resources, professional learning and networking opportunities. Learn more about us.
Join Us In 2024 For More Coffee and More Conversation!
The next Coffee and Conversation event will be on Tuesday, January 16th about Elevating and Incorporating Youth Voice!
What better way to kick off the new year than with meaningful dialogue around how OST programs can better meet the needs of youth and families in Denver by learning from, listening to and advocating for the young people we care for and serve?!
Join us on Tuesday, January 16th from 9am - 11am (location TBD)- we'll bring the coffee!
We realized that all of the important ideas, wonderings and information gathered at our Coffee and Conversation events deserves its own space...so we have created one! Visit our new "Coffee and Conversations" tab under the DAA Collective heading on daalearn.org for a re-cap of all of our monthly events, including links to resources, contact information for speakers/special guests and pictures!
For a rundown of the December Coffee and Conversation event, clickHERE.
City of Denver's Foreclosure Financial Assistance Program
In partnership with the City and County of Denver, Brother's Redevelopment is administering funds for the City's Foreclosure Financial Assistance Program to assist households at or below 80% Area Median Income. If eligible, households can receive up to $20,000 in HOA/mortgage financial assistance.
For more information about this program, including applications (in both English and Spanish), click HERE.
Households with technology or language barriers can contact Colorado Housing Connects for support at 1-844-926-6632
Share Your OST Success Stories
Colorado Afterschool Partnership (CAP) is looking for stories that highlight the positive impact OST has in your community! Share your story and you will have a chance to win a $50 Amazon gift card for your program!
Our 2023 Fall Professional Learning Slate concluded this week with the SEAL Bite Size: Purposeful Pause session! Thank you so much to all of the incredible facilitators who brought their knowledge to this space with such passion!
And a big, gigantic THANK YOU to everyone who attended our Professional Learning workshops this Fall- we had a lot of packed houses which led to beautiful connections and thoughtful conversations at each session. We look forward to seeing you all in the spring with more learning opportunities!
Holiday 2023 Tasty Food Serving Schedule!
The Office of Children’s Affairs is excited to invite all youth aged 5 to 18 for a FREE nutritious supper and/or snack at different Tasty Food sites across the city throughout this holiday season! No IDs or registrations needed – just come on over and enjoy!
Please note: Tasty Food has rolled out new serving hours for this holiday season. Make sure to check our site for the updated holiday schedule HERE☃️ This institution is an equal opportunity provider
La Oficina de Asuntos Infantiles se complace en invitar a todos los jóvenes de 5 a 18 años a recibir una cena y/o refrigerio nutritivo GRATIS en diferentes sitios de Tasty Food en toda la ciudad durante esta temporada festiva! No se necesitan identificaciones ni registros, solo ven y disfruta!
Tenga en cuenta que Tasty Food ha implementado nuevos horarios de servicio para esta temporada festiva. Asegúrese de visitar nuestro sitio para conocer el calendario de días festivos actualizadoAQUÍ☃️ Esta institución es un proveedor de igualdad de oportunidades
DAAconnect Updates
Attention 2023 Award Recipients!
Fall Award Reports are due on January 22 and must be completed in DAAconnect! Instructions on how to upload your roster can be found HERE, and instructions on how to complete your award report can be found HERE.
We will be offering a few ‘Award Report Working Sessions.’ These sessions are optional, but we encourage you to sign up for one. This will allow you dedicated time to complete your report and our DAAconnect Team will be available if you need any assistance. Please click a link below to sign up for a working session—Spaces are limited!
Note: If these dates/times do not work for your schedule and you need assistance with your award report, please reach out to the DAAconnect team!
Below are some helpful reminders when completing your award report:
Plan early!!!! Do not wait until the due date to complete your report. Our team is small and may not be able to answer your questions or assist you in time to complete your report. If you call or email us the day before or day of the report due date, it is unlikely we will be able to assist you in time and your report may be late!
Download the template from DAAconnect and start filling out your roster now. Be sure to include the required fields: participant first name, last name, DOB, DPS ID, gender, ethnicity, and total time attended (summary attendance) for the fall 2023 term.
Make sure the correct sites are appearing in the participant data tables in the Program Data form when you start the OCA Award Report. If you do not see all of your award-funded sites, please reach out to our DAAconnect team at DAAconnect@denvergov.org.
Community Opportunities
The Denver Museum of Nature and Science has two upcoming events in January that are aimed towards educators:
The Science of Changing Your Mind: Building Deeper, Stronger Conceptions of the World is a professional development course available for PreK-12 teachers to learn and engage with practical strategies that empower students to take charge of their own learning. The course is offered both face-to-face and online! To learn more, click HERE.
FREE Educator's Night at the Museum is on January 23rd from 6pm - 9pm! More details about this event will be coming soon, so make sure you check out the museum website HERE.
And check outthis flyer about both of these great events!
Explore.Act.Tell is a free experiential learning program, funded by Albertsons Companies Foundation Nourishing Neighbors Program, that teaches students to understand and act on solutions to end food insecurity in their community. If you work with youth in grades 6-12, this program is for you!
Using a project based learning strategy, students will:
The Butterfly Pavilion's Butterfly Quest is a community science initiative designed to track the lifespans of butterflies within the pavilions conservatory. It is an awesome way to get students involved in real science! It is offered afterhours (after 5pm) every second Tuesday of the month (although their team is open for other days for a private session).
Butterfly Pavilion is offering a special discount to afterschool groups that are interested in this opportunity!
For more information or help booking, please email the family programs coordinator, Maddie, at mmathew@butterflies.org.
*Please note, they require a ratio of 1 chaperone for every 10 students- the same ratio that is required for field trips.
Funding Opportunities
The New York Life Foundation's 2024 Aim High grant competition is now open! A total of 40 grants worth $1.8 million will be awarded to afterschool, summer, or expanded learning programs serving middle school youth living in under-resourced communities.
Programs will be selected for grants based on their ability to help youth transition successfully to ninth grade on time and provide academic, social, and emotional supports to youth. Programs may apply to one of four grant categories, ranging from $15,000 to $100,000, including two grant tiers with a special focus. The first will support programs' racial equity and social justice efforts. The second will focus on youth entrepreneurship and fostering an entrepreneurial mindset.
Applications are due on February 1, 2024 at 5 p.m. ET. Join a webinar on January 11 at 2 p.m. ET to learn more about this opportunity.
For more information about the grant application, to view the RFP and to apply, click HERE.
Colorado Department of Education (CDE) has released the 21st Century Community Learning Centers (CCLC) Cohort 11 grant application as well as the new Colorado Academic Accelerator Program (CO-AAP) grant applications!
Both grant programs seek to establish or expand community learning centers that will accelerate student learning by providing academic support and enrichment as well as family engagement activities in Out-of-School Time programs. CDE will award approximately $3 million in 21st CCLC funding and approximately $8 million in CO-AAP funding. Applicants to both grants may apply for up to $180,000 per center per year. The grant applications are online using CDE’s new grant management system, GAINS. More details on content, audience, and registration can be found on the GAINS Training webpage. To learn more about the grant programs, technical assistance opportunities and tools and resources for applying, visit the 21st CCLC webpageand the CO-AAP webpage.
Applications for both opportunities are due on Thursday, February 15, 2024!
Emotional Intelligence Corner:
Discover a Chill December
Many of us are heading into a much anticipated and needed break. We (mostly) love our jobs and the young people and teams we work with…AND…we need time to recharge and reset! We recognize everyone’s situation is unique and each individuals needs vary widely. We invite you to reflect on what YOU need to take care of yourself this holiday season. What does “self-care” look like for YOU? Think about the micro moments you have and how you can show up for yourself. Here are a few tips/ideas to get you thinking. You create what works for YOU.
