Thursday, March 31, 2016

FY2017 Budget Asks

Today’s blog comes to you as the first installment in our team’s analysis of Mayor Bowser’s proposed DC Budget for 2017. The Mayor’s proposal is now before Council where, through upcoming budget hearings and advocacy meetings, it will be debated and revised by Council Committees before it goes to a vote in May.

In the next few weeks, we'll be providing a deeper dive into each of our budget asks. We encourage you to follow along with our budget asks and talking points, and then join us at the Wilson Building to testify about your particular concerns at DC Council budget hearings.

Transportation Support - $950,000 (Not included in the Mayor’s proposed FY17 budget)

As we highlighted last year, the cost of transportation continues to be a pervasive barrier to the success of older youth (22-24) in re-engaging and maintaining engagement in educational opportunities. Unlike their younger colleagues (ages 5-21), who have access to the Mayor’s signature Kids Ride Free program, older youth must rely on their own, often limited, incomes or the support of their LEAs and programs to cover the cost of transportation. 


Earlier this year, DCAYA conducted a survey in collaboration with Raise DC’s Disconnected Youth Change Network (DYCN), and found that 54% of respondents 22-24 reported spending over $30 a week or $120 a month travelling to and from their programs. Additionally, over half of the older youth surveyed reported spending 45% or more of their weekly income getting to and from their educational programs. 83% of these youth reported spending around one-fifth or more of their weekly income getting to and from their programs; notably 55% of youth spending this much live in Wards 5, 7, and 8. 

An additional investment of $950,000 would ensure that these youth who have overcome multiple barriers to re-engage in their education at a Local Education Agency (LEA) would be able to attend school without the persistent worry of how they will afford to get there. To include the full breadth of youth pursuing their high school diploma or equivalent through District-funded schools (LEAs) and GED programs (CBOs), a total investment of $2.2 million is necessary.

Expanded Learning - $10 million ($4.9 million allocated in the Mayor’s proposed FY17 budget)

The mayor’s proposed budget includes an allocation of $4.9 million to the DC Trust in FY2017, including afterschool and summer community-based programming. As initial allocations go, this is the strongest we’ve seen in years, and when mid-year reprogrammed funds are included, about steady with what overall out-of-school time (OST) grants over the course of fiscal years have been. While encouraging, we see this investment as a glass “half full”.

The DC Trust’s annual share of funding for OST is a direct reflection of the value we as a District place on our kids in the hours after school and in the summer, and that share has declined by more than half from 2010 to the present year, resulting in only a quarter of the locally-funded slots for afterschool and summer learning that were there for kids just six years ago:



If we are serious about providing safe, youth-friendly opportunities focused on improving outcomes and quality of life for all our children now and in future, we must reverse these trends. With a $10 million allocation to the DC Trust for OST programming in FY2017, and a commitment from leaders to the development of a dedicated funding stream, we would be back on track to serve up to four times as many children and youth with quality expanded learning opportunities.

Educational Data Capacity - Maintain the $1.1 million allocated in the Mayor’s proposed FY17 budget

We greatly appreciate that the mayor’s proposed budget includes $1.1 million to keep DC’s Statewide Longitudinal Education Data System (better known as the SLED database) stable and fully staffed. SLED has been a critical tool in transforming the District’s approach to decision-making in education. While SLED on its own is a reliable and useful data warehouse, because of partnerships like those with the college access providers, OSSE staff have already started taking SLED’s utility to the next level – namely, to reach more audiences of education data consumers to create user-friendly tools for more networks and to support the use of SLED for data-driven decision making at all levels.

In addition to the important education research underway hinging on the availability and analysis of data from SLED, it’s also important to note that SLED plays a critical role in the development of a comprehensive and coordinated workforce development system. The District’s Draft WIOA State Plan outlines plans to create a uniform system of intake, assessment, and referrals that is predicated on the maintenance of SLED. As the District moves towards a career pathways approach to workforce development, it’s critical that data on a resident’s educational and workforce experience can be shared across systems and, eventually, be made accessible to providers to streamline the eligibility and assessment processes. As other agencies look to build out on the success of the District’s education database, maintaining staffing levels and quality within the SLED team is key.   We encourage Council to hold this investment stable and ensure full operational capacity of SLED in the years to come. 

Youth Workforce Development - $870,000-$1,000,000 (Maintain FY16 expenditures for in-school youth programming; the baseline amount is still being clarified)

As Latin American Youth Center youth Ademir Delcid shared with us a few weeks back, maintaining school-based workforce development programming is a critical component of the District’s youth workforce development system. Through academic enrichment, exposing youth to work readiness skills, and offering project-based learning, in school youth programming provides workforce development to students to help keep them engaged in high school and prepare them for successful postsecondary transitions.

Under WIOA, federal expenditures for in school programs will be reduced to a maximum of 25% of the District’s total federal allocation of $2.3 million annually. At this funding mark, in school youth services would be significantly reduced. DC’s Draft WIOA State Plan includes a proposed strategy to blend the District’s reduced in school allocation with funding that flows through the Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) to make all in school youth programs accessible to youth with disabilities. While this is an important step forward for the District in serving youth with disabilities, the capacity of the District's provider community to serve this population well is currently limited, and will require investments in training and technical assistance.  DCAYA believes that current funding for in school programs should be maintained at $870,000, and additional funding should be allocated for capacity building within the District’s in school youth providers to ensure all DC youth have access to high quality and developmentally appropriate in school workforce training. 

Youth Homelessness - $800,000 (2.3 million is included in the Mayor’s proposed FY17 budget) 
(Corrected April 5, 2016. The DHS Budget book incorrectly stated the 2017 enhancement was $3.1 million.)

The mayor’s proposed budget includes $2.3 million in new funding for homeless youth services. Since the passage of the 2014 End Youth Homelessness Amendment Act, local funding for homeless youth services has remained at $1.3 million per year, which in 2014 represented just a 15% increase to homeless youth resources from the budget passed in the previous year. It was a modest increase given the mandates of the Act, but at the time, we still had incomplete data to quantify the actual need. With the start of the annual Homeless Youth Census, we now know more.

The census data makes clear that we’ll need to scale up prevention services in the year ahead, as well as add to our supply of crisis beds and transitional and independent living spaces for youth, if we are to get to the point that actual youth homelessness in the District becomes rare, brief and non-recurring by 2020. We applaud the mayor for recognizing this need and urge the council to adopt a budget that includes this important investment. There will be additional details on the DHS budget in the coming few weeks!


That's all for now! Check back next week for a closer look at our first budget ask: expanded access to transportation supports for re-engaging youth.

Thursday, March 24, 2016

Testimony Highlights from Performance Hearings

With DC Council Budget Hearings just over a week away, we thought we'd recap and share some highlights from testimony that member organizations have provided during Performance Oversight Hearings at the Wilson Building.


Here's an excerpt from Bethany Henderson's testimony, the Executive Director of DC SCORES, provided at the performance oversight hearing for DC Public Schools:
Research shows that increased academic achievement won’t be reached simply through more instructional time. With income gaps widening, free enrichment opportunities like the ones we offer are increasingly essential to helping DC’s at-risk children achieve successful school outcomes.  Unfortunately, the need in DC is great.  Thousands of low-income children currently have no access to expanded learning programs. Indeed, over the past year our own waiting list has swelled to 16 schools.  This represents a serious opportunity gap that threatens negative long-term consequences for these children and our city. 
DC SCORES and DCPS share the same goal: that low-income DCPS students succeed in school and in life.  Community partners like DC SCORES can and do play a powerful role in realizing that goal.  Not only do we provide programming, but we bring significant private funds to the table.  For every dollar of local government funding we receive (very little of which comes from DCPS), we raise and deploy more than two dollars of private money.  This year alone we are bringing well over $1 million in private resources to bear on student outcomes.  Continued and expanded collaboration, coordination, and data-sharing between DCPS and expanded learning providers will only enhance student outcomes. 

Here is part of Frank Cervarich's testimony which he provided for the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities' performance oversight hearing, as Deputy Director for Young Playwrights' Theater:
In the past twenty years, YPT has engaged over 12,000 students in our artistic process by integrating free playwriting programming into local schools, and reached over 85,000 audience members with free, professional productions of our students' plays. We integrate our programming directly into local public schools, leading every student to write their own play and bringing professional actors into
the classroom to perform their work.  
We work to not only improve student literacy, but to inspire our region’s underrepresented young people to realize the power and value of their voices and stories. Our impact is deep and enduring. Students tell us their experience with YPT inspired them to attend college, often as first-generation applicants, and pursue careers paths from the arts to education to neuroscience.We began in 1995 serving 20 students in one classroom. Today we serve over 1,500 students in all eight wards of Washington, DC, four times more students than in 2010.  We work to meet the Mayoral priorities, and we have been doing so for over twenty years.
And in case you haven't seen last week's blog post yet, here's an excerpt of testimony which Ademir Delcid, a student in Latin American Youth Center’s Guide to Post Secondary (GPS) Program from the performance oversight hearing for the Department Of Employment Services and the Workforce Investment Council:
During my 2 years of being in LAYC, I got to meet a wonderful team of advisors. I was given the opportunity to work with Adriana, Scholastique, Ella, Diana, Alexis and Loren. Meeting them and talking with them made me realize that they knew what they wanted for us students, which was to succeed and be prepared for the next chapter in our lives. Being a senior, I do not have the opportunity to continue working with them, however all that they have done in the short amount of time were worth the little time. Overall what each and every individual in this program has helped not only me but other students achieve is the progression, impact and determination to succeed in and out of school. I have witnessed firsthand how my life has been impacted and I thank each and every member of LAYC GPS for their never ending spirit to see me and others be prepared for college and life. I see each and every individual that have worked with me as more than advisors, they are my family and LAYC is my home.
It's testimony from DCAYA organizations, community members, and youth themselves that really make a difference as our representatives make the annual policy and funding decisions whose impact lasts for much more than a single fiscal year.

So what can you do? Here's a simple list, of which we ask you do at least one:

That's it for now! And as always, let us know if you have any questions.

Wednesday, March 16, 2016

Youth Voice: Continue School-Based Workforce Development

This week we’re bringing you the testimony of Ademir Delcid, a student in LAYC’s Guide to Post Secondary (GPS) Program from last week’s performance oversight hearing (3/7) on DOES and the WIC. Currently supported by Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) dollars, programs like GPS are facing significant funding shortfalls under the District’s Draft WIOA State Plan. A reduction in the federal allocation of in-school program funding, the District’s planned emphasis on increasing pre-employment supports specifically for youth with disabilities, and, most importantly, the lack of local dollars to supplement these programs could threaten their continuation. (More on these trends here.) Especially as the District moves towards the creation of a career pathways system, it’s critical to bolster programs like GPS that help youth transition into post secondary education and better jobs. We'll turn it to Ademir to explain why:

My name is Ademir Delcid, I am 18 years and a senior attending Woodrow Wilson Senior High School. I have been a part of The Latin American Youth Center (LAYC) Guide to Post Secondary (GPS) for the past two years. Being a part of LAYC has been a wonderful experience.

Through LAYC, I have improved academically and been given the opportunity to give back. In school, my progress is tracked so that I am passing my classes. If an assignment or anything is missing that may affect my grade, the advisors of LAYC at school make sure that I get the help to understand the lesson/homework through after school tutoring or personal help. I am also getting help with my essays and writing. If I have a writing assignment or college application, they make sure that it has been reviewed and corrected before submission. I have participated in community service events through LAYC. I attended the MLK Day of service and Martha's Table, each one allowing me to give back to those in need. I have also participated in dances that were hosted at LAYC and Wilson, both events allowing people to be entertained and enjoy themselves.

GPS has given me financial help and preparation for college. Being enrolled in the program, I have learned about FAFSA, what to look for in colleges, how to apply to scholarships and prepare for the SAT’s. I am also being paid in different ways, some being: taking the SAT, attendance, CASAS testing, and community service events. With the money I earned, I created a bank account that I have put my money on a debit card. With the help of my advisors I was taught how to save my money, in preparation for college, so that when I do attend college I will have saved up enough to pay for school related items or other needed things. Through GPS, I have applied to over 12 schools and 6 scholarships. I have learned a lot during my senior year and it has prepared me for college.

During my 2 years of being in LAYC, I got to meet a wonderful team of advisors. I was given the opportunity to work with Adriana, Scholastique, Ella, Diana, Alexis and Loren. Meeting them and talking with them made me realize that they knew what they wanted for us students, which was to succeed and be prepared for the next chapter in our lives. Being a senior, I do not have the opportunity to continue working with them, however all that they have done in the short amount of time were worth the little time. Overall what each and every individual in this program has helped not only me but other students achieve is the progression, impact and determination to succeed in and out of school. I have witnessed firsthand how my life has been impacted and I thank each and every member of LAYC GPS for their never ending spirit to see me and others be prepared for college and life. I see each and every individual that have worked with me as more than advisors, they are my family and LAYC is my home.

For more information on how to get involved in advocating for the continuation of in-school workforce development programs this budget season, check out our budget hearing schedule and testimony guide, or reach out to DCAYA's policy analyst, Amy Dudas, at amy@dc-aya.org.

Wednesday, March 09, 2016

Local Funding for Local Opportunity: The Role & Vision of the DC Trust in Expanded Learning

The District of Columbia surpasses any state in its broad, unmet demand for afterschool and summer learning opportunities. More than 70% of our kids in grades K through 8 would participate in a program if one were available after school, compared to a national average of only 40% for all kids.*

The greatest gains from expanded learning programs are shown to be for youth who are considered at risk of academic failure due to poverty**, and in DC, that means close to 40,000 students in DC Public Schools (DCPS) and our public charter schools. Yet at last report for this school year, the DC Trust’s FY2016 budget had only allocated for 2,465 total out-of-school time (OST) program slots for youth. Alarmingly, the same report indicated that there is no current FY2016 budget allocation at all for summer learning.

With recent changes in the organization’s leadership and internal staffing structures, there has been lingering uncertainty about the DC Trust’s future as the grantmaking intermediary for local OST funding - uncertainty we strove to resolve at their recent performance hearing on February 23, 2016.

Community Providers Weigh In
The DC Alliance of Youth Advocates (DCAYA) and several of our community-based partners testified at the performance oversight hearing for the DC Trust before the DC Council’s Committee on Health and Human Services. Several clear themes emerged from across partner testimonies:

Wednesday, March 02, 2016

Homeless Youth Census: Data-Driven Advocacy Calls for Greater Investment to End Youth Homelessness

The National Coalition for the Homeless reports there are between 1 million and 1.7 million youth who have run away or been displaced from their home. Young people experiencing homelessness are not always seen as a visible street population, which often means there is little public awareness or political urgency to be found for taking critical and timely action. This was the case in the District just as recently as 2013, even though the handful of shelters serving youth at that time were reporting double-digit waitlists.

The District has come a long way since that time. In May 2014 the DC Council passed the End Youth Homelessness Amendment Act, which mandated and funded an expansion of accessible youth-friendly services and an annual census of District youth experiencing homelessness. The first annual Homeless Youth Census was conducted by the Department of Human Services (DHS) over a nine day period at the end of August 2015 in close collaboration with the Community Partnership for the Prevention of Homelessness.

The census reveals that at that time, there were some 545 unaccompanied youth experiencing homelessness in the District of Columbia – almost half of whom identified as LGBTQ. This census marks the first time that we have such a thorough estimate of youth who are homeless (and particularly those identifying as LGBTQ) and the importance of having this knowledge cannot be overstated.