West Virginia children and parents will benefit from more high-quality after school programs, thanks to a three-year grant to the West Virginia University Extension Service from the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation.

The $408,000 grant (including matching funds) will fund the West Virginia Afterschool Network, a formal statewide collaboration designed to improve the quantity and quality of after school programming.

The announcement was made Friday (Feb. 16) by Donna Patton, associate professor with the WVU Extension Service, who will coordinate the networks planning until a director is hired. Through its 4-H Youth Development Program, WVU Extension is a leader in providing after school programs in the state.

With the grant, West Virginia joins 29 other statewide after school networks that have received Mott funding since 2002. Delaware and Utah also received funds this year to launch statewide after school networks that promote sustainable and effective after school programming.

Participants in West Virginias network will include policymakers, educators, child-care providers, youth development workers, program developers, child advocates and parents. Match funding will come from the W.Va. Department of Education, W.Va. Department of Health and Human Services, WVU Extension Service, the Office of the Secretary of Education and the Arts, and the West Virginia State University Extension Service.

The Mott Foundations support will jump-start and sustain successful after school programs in West Virginia,said Patton.It will provide the resources we need to bring together the key decision-makers on after school programs in the state. We will coordinate our efforts to provide the best after school programming we can and to build robust support among parents, the business community, lawmakers and after school program providers.

The West Virginia network will focus its collaboration on three related goals:

supporting statewide, regional and local after school partnerships at all levels, particularly school-community partnerships; supporting statewide efforts to secure the resources needed to sustain new; and existing after school programs ensuring that programs are of high quality

Our hope is that funding for the networks will encourage local and state policymakers to invest additional resources into expanding quality after school opportunities and improving their sustainability,said An-Me Chung, program officer with the Mott Foundation.The networks will also provide a means for joint planning, sharing of resources and best practices, building bridges among federal, state, and local after school initiatives and forging partnerships necessary for comprehensive statewide after school policies.

In supporting the Network, West Virginia First Lady Gayle Manchin said,The principles supported by the Statewide Afterschool Network are the same as those reinforced by Americas Five Promises: (1) ongoing relationships with caring adults such as parents, mentors or coaches who offer children and youth support, care and guidance; (2) safe places with structured activities that promote space for children and youth to learn and grow; (3) a healthy start and future including adequate nutrition, exercise and health care; (4) a marketable skill through effective education and (5) opportunities to give back to the community through service, which enhance self-esteem, boost confidence and heighten a sense of responsibility to the community.

Several national organizations provide technical support to the statewide networks. They include the Afterschool Alliance, Council of Chief State School Officers, National League of Cities, National Governors Association, National Conference of State Legislatures, Finance Project and University of South Carolina Education Foundation, with assistance from Learning Points Associates and Collaborative Communications Group.

Charles Stewart Mott, an automotive pioneer, established the foundation in 1926 in Flint, Mich. The foundation is a private philanthropy committed to supporting projects that promote a just, equitable and sustainable society. More information about the foundation is available on the Web,www.mott.org