Definitions

A community learning center offers academic, artistic, and cultural enrichment opportunities to students and their families during nonschool hours (before or after school) or periods when school is not in session (including holidays, weekends, and summer recess). A center supported with 21st CCLC funds is considered to be the physical location where grant-funded services and activities are provided to participating students and adults.

A center is characterized by defined hours of operation; a dedicated staff that plans, facilitates, and supervises program activities; and an administrative structure that may include a position akin to a center coordinator. A 21st CCLC grant must fund at least one 21st CCLC center.

If the same participants attending a program participate in activities at multiple sites, only one of these locations should be selected as the primary center serving that group of participants.

Statutorily authorized events or undertakings at the center that involve one or more program participants.

Activities Targeting Adult Family Members must require ongoing and sustained participation by the adult family member in order to achieve the acquisition of knowledge or a skill that is meant to be imparted through participation in the service or activity. Examples of activities that conform to these requirements would include GED classes, classes on how to develop a resume, or a programming series on effective parenting strategies. Episodic, non-recurring, or special events are likely not to conform to these requirements. For example, an open house night for the parents of children attending the center that involves a meal and social activities would not conform to these requirements.

Adults age 19 or older who are NOT in elementary, middle, or high school that are family members of participating children and who participate in educational services or other activities appropriate for adults provided by the center.

An organization other than the grantee that actively contributes to the 21st CCLC-funded project.

Any public or private school that provides students to the 21st CCLC.

The entity serving as the fiduciary agent for a given 21st CCLC grant.

Refers to students who have attended a 21st CCLC program for at least 30 days (which do not have to be consecutive) during the reporting period.

The reporting period for the annual performance report coincides with the school year and includes the summer prior to the school year.

The assessment(s) administered by a given state relied upon by the state education agency (SEA) to meet consolidated reporting requirements under the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001.

An organization that is under contract with the grantee to provide 21st CCLC grant-funded activities or services. For APR purposes, a subcontractor is considered to be a type of partner.

This survey is administered at the end of the year. The survey asks school-day teachers to report if regular attendees' behavior improved or did not improve in certain areas. Teacher selection: For every student you have identified as a regular attendee (30 days or more), select one of his or her regular school-day teachers to complete the teacher survey. For elementary school students, the teacher should be the regular classroom teacher. For middle and high school students, a mathematics or English teacher should be surveyed. Although you may include in your sample teachers who are also serving as 21st CCLC program staff, it is preferable to survey teachers who are not also program staff. There should be one teacher survey filled out for every student identified as a regular attendee.

Typical can be defined as the usual or characteristic attributes associated with center operation and programming. By definition, a 21st CCLC center should be characterized by defined hours of operation that should be relatively consistent across the school year and summer (e.g., 3:00-6:00 p.m., Monday through Thursday). Special, nonrecurring, or episodic events, field trips, or programming would not be considered typical attributes associated with center operation and should not be considered when reporting information associated with the typical hours and days of operation of the center nor when reporting the typical activities provided by the center.

In some instances, centers may be characterized by recurring periods of operation or programming that take place on an ongoing basis but less frequently than weekly. For example, a center may be open on the fourth Saturday of every month in addition to a regular weekly schedule of 3:00–6:00 p.m., Monday through Thursday. In this case, in order to report on typical hours of operation, the center may want to consider adding up the total hours of operation for a typical month and dividing by 4.3 to obtain a weekly average that can be used to report on typical hours of operation. A similar approach can be taken to reporting on the typical number of days a center was open per week and the typical number of hours per week that a given activity was attended by center participants.

An entity organized and operated exclusively for one or more of the purposes set forth in Internal Revenue Code Section 501(c)(3). For the purposes of completing the APR, in order to be identified as a Community-Based Organization/Nonprofit Agency, an organization should not be classifiable as a Nationally Affiliated Nonprofit Agency or a Faith-Based Organization.

An entity whose primary program area can be defined as being religion related. A Faith-Based Organization could be a religious congregation or an organization that primarily undertakes activities that are of a religious nature. Please note that YMCAs/YWCAs are not considered to be faith-based organizations.

A nonprofit entity that is associated with a national organization. Local YMCAs, YWCAs, and Boys and Girls Clubs are all considered to be nationally affiliated nonprofit agencies. Entities such as the Girl Scouts, the Boy Scouts and Big Brothers/Big Sisters should be identified under the category of Nationally Affiliated Nonprofit Agency - Other.

Enrichment activities expand on students' learning in ways that differ from the methods used during the school day. They often are interactive and project focused. They enhance a student's education by bringing new concepts to light or by using old concepts in new ways. These activities are fun for the student, but they also impart knowledge. They allow the participants to apply knowledge and skills stressed in school to real-life experiences.

These activities specifically target students whose academic performance has been deemed to be in need of improvement given that the student in not performing at grade level, is failing, or is otherwise performing below average. Academic improvement programs are designed to address deficiencies in student academic performance. Activities in this category may involve tutoring, academic enrichment, or other forms of service delivery that specifically involve students identified as in need of academic improvement.

These activities specifically target students with limited English proficiency and are designed to further enhance students' ability to utilize the English language.

These activities specifically target truant, expelled, or suspended students and are designed to re-engage these students in educational services that have estranged these students from traditional educational settings and/or address academic attainment/behavioral issues through counseling and support.

These activities may target either youths and/or adults participating in the 21st CCLC program and are designed to support the development of a defined skill set that is directly transferable to a specific vocation, industry, or career. For youths participating in center programming, activities that are designed to expose youths to various types of careers and which help inform youths of the skills needed to obtain a given career could also be considered in this activity category.

These activities are characterized by defined service tasks performed by students that address a given community need and that provide for structured opportunities that link tasks to the acquisition of values, skills, or knowledge by participating youths.

These activities are designed to prevent youths from engaging in high-risk behaviors including the use of drugs and alcohol, promote the amelioration of the causal factors that may lead youths to participate in such activities through counseling and support, and/or the cultivation of core ethical values such as caring, honesty, fairness, responsibility, and respect for self and others that are likely to contribute to prevention efforts.

21st CCLC funds are used specifically to expand the normal operating hours of a library.

Homework help refers to program time that is dedicated to assisting students work independently on homework, with or without assistance from staff, volunteers, or older peers.

Mentoring activities primarily are characterized by matching students one-on-one with one or more adult role models, often from business or the community, for guidance and support.

These activities specifically target adult family members of youths participating in the 21st CCLC program and are designed to more actively engage parents in supporting the educational attainment of their children and/or enhance the literacy skills of adult family members.

These activities are not academic in nature, but rather allow students time to relax or play. Sports, games, and clubs fall into this category. Occasional academic aspects of recreation activities can be pointed out, but the primary lessons learned in recreational activities are in the areas of social skills, teamwork, leadership, competition, and discipline.

Supplemental Educational Services are a component of Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), as reauthorized by the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). These services are meant to provide extra academic assistance to increase the academic achievement of eligible students in schools that have not met State targets for increasing student achievement (adequate yearly progress). These services may include tutoring and after-school services. They may be offered through public- or private-sector providers that are approved by the state, such as public schools, public charter schools, local education agencies, educational service agencies and faith-based organizations. Students from low-income families who remain in Title I schools that fail to meet state standards for at least three years are eligible to receive supplemental educational services.

These activities involve the direct provision of assistance to students in order to facilitate the acquisition of skills and knowledge related to concepts addressed during the school day. Tutors or teachers directly work with students individually and/or in small groups to complete their homework, prepare for tests, and work specifically on developing an understanding and mastery of concepts covered during the school day. Please note that tutoring services directly supported through Supplemental Educational Services provided under the auspices of Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), as reauthorized by the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), should be counted in the Supplemental Educational Service activity category.

These activities intentionally promote youth leadership through skill development and the provision of formal leadership opportunities that are designed to foster and inspire leadership aptitude in participating youth.