In January 2022, Innovate Public Schools hosted a webinar on the Expanded Learning Opportunities Program (ELO-P) with guests from the California Department of Education. Over 135 professionals from local education agencies (LEAs) throughout California joined us to learn how to use state funding for learning programs outside of regular school hours. Special thanks to all our guest speakers and panelists, as well as our parent leaders who helped put this together.
Parents want more from the Expanded Learning Opportunities Program
In another post, we gave a detailed overview on the Expanded Learning Opportunities Program. To quickly summarize, the program provides funding to LEAs so they can offer learning programs, like tutoring and social-emotional support. These offerings happen outside of regular school hours, like before and after school or during summer. Through ELO-P, California hopes to help students recover from the pandemic’s negative effects on students’ academic and social-emotional well-being.
While the ELO Program provides an unprecedented opportunity for schools, much is left to be desired. Throughout California, parents began to recognize certain limitations to the ELO Program. For example, the program priorities TK-6th grade, only supporting other students if LEAs meet requirements for TK-6th graders first. Thus, it doesn’t guarantee access to programming for middle and high school students. As a result, parents have engaged in the state budget process, hosting over 70 meetings with school leaders, nonprofits, and elected officials.
Innovate parents and the CDE join forces
Through meetings and research, parent leaders learned that the CDE’s Expanded Learning Division would oversee the ELO-P funds. Additionally, leaders discovered the Division provides coaching and technical support to LEAs implementing high-quality opportunities for students and families. This prompted leaders to meet with Michael Funk, CDE’s Director of Expanded Learning Division, to understand more about the program. Soon after, it became apparent that Funk fully-believed in this program’s ability to provide substantial recovery for students. Moreover, he encouraged parents to engage with districts regarding the program.
Over several meetings, parent leaders shared their experiences talking to districts about the program. Parents saw a need to bring greater awareness and information about the ELO Program to districts across the state. And so, Innovate and the CDE joined forces to host an informational webinar about the Expanded Learning Opportunities Program.
Innovate parents lead an informational webinar
After months of preparation, Innovate Public Schools, parents leaders, and the CDE hosted an hour-long webinar to over 135 attendees. Innovate parent leaders kicked off the webinar by showcasing their journey to secure these funds alongside community-based organizations (CBOs). By providing context, LEAs in attendance understood the need to capitalize on ELO-P.
Then, leaders passed the mic to Michael Funk and his colleague Sterling Williams, CDE’s Contract Monitor of Expanded Learning Division. Together, the two explained ELO-P’s technical aspects, scope, and potential.
To provide real world examples, Moreno Valley Unified School District’s Lisa C. Broomfield, Ed.D and Jurupa Valley Unified School District’s Kimberly Corbin discussed how they leveraged ELO-P in their districts. For attendees, they illustrated the value districts could receive from partnering with CBOs to provide learning programs.
“If you don’t have a great system to gather that information … talk to the parents, they’ll tell you what they need”
– Kimberly Corbin, Director of Curriculum & Assessment, Jurupa Valley Unified School District
To close things out, we asked attendees a few poll questions to gauge their feelings towards ELO-P. Discussing next steps, we encouraged them to engage parents in planning their ELO Program.
Where we go from here
We hope all attendees left inspired to leverage the ELO Program for their students. As we’ve said in the past, only together can we provide after school and individualized support for all students. Moving forward, Innovate Public Schools and our parent leaders will continue to reach out and collaborate with LEAs.
Take action now
As California prepares for another historic budget surplus in 2022, we must ensure that legislators prioritize after school enrichment and tutoring to help students fully recover, catch up academically, and thrive. Tell CA legislators to fulfill the promise of after school for all!
Innovate Public Schools is a nonprofit community organization that builds the capacity of parents and educators working together to create excellent and equitable public schools.