The issue…

Schools are struggling to meet higher expectations for academic achievement, but they cannot succeed alone. Support for learning has to happen outside school, too. Research shows major payoffs when parents and community institutions are highly engaged in supporting learning. Parents are looking for assistance in educating their children. Community institutions must find more effective ways to collaborate with families and create a more supportive climate for learning.

The response…

Parents and Communities for Kids (PACK) is a Wallace Foundation initiative whose focus is on improving learning outcomes for children ages 6 to 10 – the years when basic literacy skills are established – through activities outside traditional school. PACK derives from extensive experience and learning from the Foundation’s long-standing support of family literacy, urban parks, libraries, museums, youth development, and after-school programs.

The strategies…

Using a combination of program, research and communications activities, Wallace is working in four select communities – New Haven, CT, St. Paul, MN, Detroit and Boston -- to improve out-of-school learning opportunities and supports for children. Specifically, PACK is supporting strategies to:

• Improve the supply of quality out of school learning opportunities for children and families;
• Increase the demand for and participation in such opportunities; and
• Use this participation to help children learn and prepare for successful adulthood.

Work-in-progress…

In December 2001, sponsoring organizations in four cities were awarded implementation grants of $1.5 million over four years to participate in PACK. Each organization will design specific programs to improve learning outcomes for children ages 6 to 10. Highlights of plans by sponsoring organizations in newly-named PACK communities include:

• New Haven, CT - The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven is collaborating with the Graustein Memorial Fund to create strategies for community organizations that promote lifelong learning activities in the home and community. A consortium including the Ansonia Nature and Recreation Center, the Connecticut Children’s Museum, the New Haven Free Public Library and Young Audiences of CT have received mini-grants to test new family learning activities. Lessons will be disseminated to organizations throughout the region.
• Detroit, MI - The Community Foundation for Southeastern Michigan has launched “The Great Outdoors,” an initiative to mobilize parents, children and community organizations to use the out-of-doors to improve the health, learning and general well-being of young people in southeastern Michigan. The Community Foundation is making grants to community organizations, schools and other entities that will test strategies for improving family engagement in outdoor learning activities. Lessons will be disseminated through forums and the Community Foundation’s website (http://www.cfsem.org).
• St. Paul, MN - The Humphrey Institute’s Center for Democracy and Citizenship at the University of Minnesota is implementing a multi-year community building effort in the West Side neighborhood of St. Paul, home to a dense concentration of Latino and Hmong families. Through PACK, local organizations and leaders are working to expand learning opportunities for children and families at home and in the community, including after-school programs, neighborhood celebrations, leadership development, youth engagement, social marketing and other activities.
• Boston, MA - The United Way of Massachusetts Bay has launched “Engaging Families,” a partnership with the Black Ministerial Alliance and the Latino After-School Initiative to promote parent involvement in after-school programs and in home-based learning activities. Through “Engaging Families,” community-based after-school programs in these two networks are given grants, technical assistance, and other tools to engage and assist parents in supporting their children’s learning. “Engaging Families” is part of the “Keeping Kids on Track” initiative, a broader effort by United Way to ensure that young people graduate from high school prepared to lead successful lives.