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Getting Connected to OregonASK
Join OregonASK Quarterly Partner Meetings
OregonASK hosts quarterly partner meetings to keep partners informed, build connection, and provide ongoing opportunities for feedback. RSVP HERE for our next virtual meeting
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OregonASK sends monthly e-newsletters and regular policy and training updates. Sign Up HERE to make sure you don’t miss upcoming opportunities.
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Connecting to Advocacy
OregonASK helps programs connect directly to decision makers, supports opportunities to elevate youth voice, and helps programs connect to their communities. Find out more about annual opportunities and getting connected HERE.
What Would Happen with No Summer Funding?
Interruption in services, for even just one summer, has long-term, historic ramifications.
- Growing Distrust in an ‘Equitable’ System: The perception becomes a reality when one time funding to prioritize communities of color and youth with disabilities gets swept to the wayside when the state faces hard choices.
- Dismantling of Youth Development Workforce: Without funding to maintain or hire necessary staff, programs will be forced to lay off trained, valuable staff and unable to develop the support necessary for positive youth development that happens outside of the school day.
- Decreased Youth Development: From the programs who provide youth jobs to the spaces where youth are inspired to try something new, summer is key in engaging and developing young people into thriving members of our community.
- Destabilization for Disengaged Youth: As youth are continuing to face dramatic mental health turmoil across the state, we must continue to support positive relationships and experiences that will combat the multiple years of pandemic trauma.
CLICK HERE to see what programs shared about the deep impact their youth, families and programs would feel immediately if there was no funding available for summer 2023. We can also see the longer term impact our state would face in the commitment to supporting fair and equitable opportunities for every Oregonian. We know there are many difficult decisions to make at the state level, but this is an opportunity to act in building authentically equitable systems that will directly and deeply impact youth and families.
If Oregon Legislative Leaders do not act now, youth without access to resources will be left behind. For decades, summer camps and enrichment opportunities have been accessible for those with means, research shows that high-income families spend nearly $8,000 more per year on education & enrichment than low-income families, creating continued inequity for youth and families. Research demonstrates that afterschool and summer programs offer a wealth of benefits to the children and youth (and their families) who attend them, including a safe place to be, peace of mind for working parents, academic support for struggling students, a sense of belonging, and enrichment opportunities.

Quotes from Oregon Community Summer Grantees
What would your summer look like without fun(ding)?
their child to camp this summer.
We have cut our summer programming by 50%
Lack of grant funding means we have to prioritize schools who can mostly pay for programming, which means that we can’t serve as well those schools that are under-resourced.
52% of students in our summer program accessed partial or full scholarships
June 2023 Update
Join us in championing afterschool and summer programs in Oregon! There are plenty of ways to get involved, from attending our quarterly partner meetings, to joining us for a day of advocacy at our annual Day at the Capitol.
Check out the links below to explore all the ways to get involved, and be sure to subscribe to our newsletter to stay informed on all the happenings of afterschool and summer in Oregon!

Why should I get involved with afterschool?
Afterschool and summer enrichment programs reinforce what
students learn in school and provide extra support to students
who are struggling or have disabilities. Programs provide
more time for deeper learning, creative spaces for hands-on
projects, and opportunities for students of all ages to explore
careers.