The Finance Project and the Council of Chief State School Officers have released this strategy brief. It describes how six major funding streams included in the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) can support extended learning opportunities. The brief provides important context for those seeking to access these funding streams, and includes a discussion of strategies, considerations and tips for accessing each source.

This report from the Extended Learning Opportunities Project profiles five summer learning programs that have contributed to improved student achievement in high-poverty schools.

Today, President Bush submits his FY2006 budget proposal to Congress. The administration has said it plans to halve the deficit within five years, despite declining federal revenues. In his State of the Union address, the president called for cutting or eliminating 150 domestic government programs—among them anti-poverty programs like housing, food stamps and Medicaid. Children's advocates are also watching for cuts to USDA food and nutrition services. Concerned adults can use President Bush's FY2006 budget as common ground to jump start discussion about public service programs, and how America might balance federal spending and deficit reduction.

The Coalition on Human Needs' Opportunity For All Campaign examines the budget from a community advocacy standpoint.

America's Second Harvest and the Food Research and Action Center offer information and action steps on the FY2006 budget.

This National Academies' Transportation Research Board report explores the link between the "built" environment—buildings, roads, parks, and other structures that
physically define a community—and physical activity levels.

Advocates often note that high-quality, comprehensive early childhood development programs are cost-effective in boosting outcomes for children. New data from the Economic Policy Institute offers proof. According to this report, investments in these programs would pay for themselves in 17 years and, in 30 years, would give taxpayers a $2 savings for every $1 invested. Within 25 years, the offsetting budget savings for all levels of government combined would reach $31 billion.

Parks give kids good places to play outside, but - based on the experience of a new generation of youth programs in urban parks - they can also go far beyond recreation to provide high-quality programs that foster healthy youth development, according to an Urban Institute report published in June 2004.

Along with ranking 100 cities and towns, this Population Connection report offers model programs that improve the quality of life for children in their communities -- including policy interventions that aim to reduce the number of teenage pregnancies and births, including comprehensive sex education and access to reproductive health care services. The report also offers data on high school graduates, kids in poverty, violent crime rates and other indicators.

Community organizations can develop and enhance meaningful roles for older adults in after-school programs with the help of this Experience Corps toolkit.

Would you like more kids to come more often to your after-school program? You're not alone. In this issue brief, the Harvard Family Research Project reviews the common barriers to youth participation - including students' desires to relax and "hang out" with friends, work and family responsibilities, boredom or disinterest, and transportation/safety challenges - and how to address them.

Want to brief lawmakers on new findings or policy options? Our elected officials have little time to investigate a lot of topics in depth, so come prepared to grab their attention and provide them with good one or two-page summaries. Jack Tweedie, of the National Conference of State Legislatures, says: "Talk to them like you would to your mother or brother, not your dissertation advisor. In writing, use plain language, graphs, and illustrations. Real-life examples that demonstrate conclusions are best." Learn more in the spring 2004 issue of the Harvard Family Research Project.