The Emoti-Con Design Fellows is a free course offered spring 2016, held at Parsons The New School for Design, that gives youth professional experience designing for a large New York City youth digital media & technology event, Emoti-Con. Design Fellows work on graphic design projects, manage event social media, support teens who will participate in the event, design a new game or design challenge that all attendees participate in, and provide event day staffing. Applications are due December 20, 2015. New York City teens in grades 9-12 are eligible to apply.

The American Museum of Natural History's Saltz Internship Program is now accepting applications for spring 2016. Saltz interns use equipment and technologies to guide museum visitors of all ages in investigations of artifacts, specimens, and the laws of physics. The Saltz Internship Program is an intensive learning and work experience for youth ages 16 - 18 and is intended to build upon the Museum's After School Program. Preference will be given to youth who have completed two After-School Program courses in life sciences, astronomy, or earth and planetary sciences, but all are encouraged to apply. Applications are due January 3, 2016.

Tanenbaum is hosting a free six-part webinar series based on their creative, academically integrated K-6 World Olympics for All curriculum. Participants will receive step-by-step strategies and turnkey resources for implementing a fun and engaging program that meets learning standards and promotes both physical and socio-emotional health. The first 100 registrants will receive a free printed copy of the World Olympics curriculum. One copy per institution. The first webinar in the series is January 21, 2016 from 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm EST. The full schedule and registration information can be found on the Tanenbaum website.

Youth Action Day in Albany in support of the Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP) takes place on February 1, 2016. Youth Action Day is a day organized by the Campaign for Summer Jobs to mobilize youth, youth organizations, and communities to fight for continued city and state funding of SYEP. Every year students travel to Albany to advocate on behalf of the program to State Legislators with the goal of maintaining the funding for and increasing SYEP slots. Download a flyer to learn more and to register your group to participate.

The LRNG Innovators Challenge supports educators to work together to develop new practices, arrangements, curricula, and/or projects that have, at their core, principles of Connected Learning - interest-driven, production-centered, peer-supported work by young people. Grants are $20,000 each. Successful applications will propose an innovative idea that connects in-school and out-of-school learning and creates opportunities for young people to follow their interests and do ambitious work across the spheres of their lives. Applications are due January 13, 2016.

A new report from the Center for American Progress, Point of Entry: The Preschool to Prison Pipeline, highlights the trends around preschool discipline. Data from the U.S. Department of Education show that African American schoolchildren of all ages are over three times more likely to be suspended and expelled than their non-Hispanic white peers. According to the report, the practice of suspending and expelling children—particularly those younger than age 5—from early childhood settings can have profound consequences. The report provides recommendations and approaches to increase the protective factors available to ensure that young children stay in school and reap the full benefits of early learning while simultaneously supporting schools and teachers to actively resist the criminalization of African American youth.