Reimagining Their Futures
Citizen Schools' Alumni Make Waves at National After-School Symposium

A gathering of leaders in education met on Capitol Hill in April to pursue the role of out-of-school time in improving outcomes for young people. They heard from scholars, policymakers, and heads of foundations. Among all the practitioners and thought leaders, two voices stood out: teenagers Keith Nolen and Ramona Coleman.

These alumni of Citizen Schools parlayed their official roles as introductory commentators into prominent participants. They left Washington, DC, feeling that they had brought their experience to a conversation that will impact thousands of young people in the years ahead. "There were all these adults that cared," Ramona says. "I've never been exposed to that before. It amazed me!"

To learn more about the Reimagining After-School Symposium and other efforts to build the out-of-school learning field, click here.

Citizen Schools teamed up with the Afterschool Alliance, the Education Trust and YMCA of the USA to present the symposium, called Reimagining After-School.   With sponsorship from the Atlantic Philanthropies, the James B. Hunt, Jr., Insitute for Educational Leadership and Policy and the Nellie Mae Education Foundation, the day-long event was designed to bring a variety of approaches together to specifically address ways out-of-school education programs can help drive high school success and college and workforce readiness. Through speakers, panel discussions, and focus groups-as well as a gallery of promising practices from across the country and informal conversations-more than 120 leaders in youth development sought ways the field can benefit from combining perspectives.

One perspective that made a strong impression was that of the young people themselves. Ramona and Keith represented the true beneficiaries of after-school programs with intelligence and bracing energy. Keith opened the program with remarks about the impact Citizen Schools had on his educational progress (he now attends the demanding Codman Academy in Boston), but as he listened to the conversation continue, he was impressed by the scope of the out-of-school effort nationwide. "I got to meet a lot of people who do things to help out kids, especially those who grew up in poor neighborhoods," he recalls. "I can't go wrong-I know they can help me go to college and have mental support."

Ramona introduced the keynote speaker, former San Francisco superintendent Arlene Ackerman. She too used her Citizen Schools experience as an example of how powerful after-school time can be if used for quality educational programming. After the standing ovation Ramona received for her stirring oration, the keynote speaker seconded her conviction. "After-school programs could have a major role in addressing the dropout problem," she insisted. "It's time to permanently anchor quality after-school programs in our schools."Ackerman inspired participants to reach for the impossible by quoting from Edgar Guest:

Somebody said that it couldn't be done,
But he with a chuckle replied
That "Maybe it couldn't," but he would be one
Who wouldn't say so till he'd tried.
So he buckled right in with a trace of a grin
On his face. If he worried, he hid it.
He started to sing as he tackled the thing
That couldn't be done, and he did it.

Ramona and Keith took this message to heart, and stood up after Ackerman's address to ask her, and the entire group, a few pointed questions about their plans. "I felt they really understood where I was coming from," says Ramona. "After-school programs can really have an impact on students' lives. I proved that." The impact was mutual. Both students have been invited to introduce keynote speakers at the Education Trust's annual conference in November.

As the after-school field continues to serve more children and gain credibility from education experts, Citizen Schools believes that gatherings like the Reimagining After-School Symposium will become increasingly vital. Wherever the debate takes place, though, voices like Ramona's and Keith's will also become more prominent: the rule, not the exception, to educational success.

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