Leadership

Leadership and quality in afterschool programs are inseparable; for programs to succeed and become sustainable, they need strong leadership at all levels.

The demands on executive directors and other high-level staff of community based organizations (CBOs) – fundraising; budgeting; outcomes tracking and reporting; staff recruitment, development, and retention; and, above all, developing and refining high-quality programs – require increasingly diverse skill sets. This is especially true in difficult economic times, which call for greater organizational efficiency, and at smaller agencies where each staff member tends to multiple, disparate duties with limited administrative support. The nonprofit sector in general, and the afterschool field specifically, must maintain a robust leadership pipeline in order to continue transforming young lives affected by poverty through quality afterschool programs.