Subject: May News: Youth STEM Ambassadors and Pitch Challenge Closing soon!

VPOST is excited to officially open our recruitment for our 2023-2024 cohort of STEM Youth Ambassadors! Virginia youth ages 13-18 are encouraged to apply to represent teens across the Commonwealth who love participating in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) activities during afterschool and want to share their stories.

VPOST will guide STEM Ambassadors in creating and telling their unique stories through a series of monthly sessions, virtually, (times to be determined) between June and November 2023 and January-February 2024. The STEM Youth Ambassador program leads up to an advocacy day at the Virginia General Assembly in Richmond, VA in early 2024.

Youth that successfully completes the program will be rewarded for their time in the prep sessions with a $100 pre-paid VISA gift card.

Applications are due May 30, 2023! Questions can be directed to Christine Jones Monaccio at christine.jones-monaccio@v-post.org.

Learn more here!

Just Days Left to Apply for the YES Pitch Challenge!

The YES Pitch Challenge is a contest for students in Virginia in grades 6-12, participating in out-of-school programs. This contest helps kids learn and engage in creativity, problem-solving, critical thinking, and presentation skills.

Think of a business idea. It can be a product, service, social enterprise, or technology business.
Enter as an individual or team of up to 4 by creating a video of your team pitching the business idea.
Complete your video and submit it to your teacher/ program leader before the deadline of May 15th, 2023.
Three (3) winners will receive a $100 dollar incentive! Winners will be announced and contacted by May 31st, 2023.

Learn more

VPOST is excited to announce Mayor Deanna Reed has joined our Leadership Advisory Council! Mayor Reed is the first African American female mayor in Harrisonburg’s history. She is the Regional Advancement Director for Eastern Mennonite University and is a 2021 graduate of the White-Riley-Peterson Policy Fellowship of Furman University. In addition, the Virginia Library of Congress recognized Mayor Reed as one of the Strong Men and Strong Women in Virginia’s history. Mayor Reed serves as the Virginia Municipal League Legislative Committee Chair and Virginia Transit Association Vice President. Learn more here.

Child care for Working Families reintroduced into US Congress by Virginia Representatives

Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA) joined Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) and Representative Bobby Scott (D-VA) in reintroducing the Child Care for Working Families Act. The bill aims to make child care more affordable for working families, improve quality and supply and support higher wages for workers. One aim of the bill is that no working family would pay more than 7% of their income on child care and a typical family would pay $10 per day for child care while many would pay nothing at all. Learn more here.

Applications Now Open for the Summer Food Service Program

The Summer Food Service Program which is funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture allows organizations to combine a feeding program with another activity in communities where at least 50 percent of the children are eligible for free and reduced-price meals. Applications are due June 1.

To promote the program in your community, check out NoKid Hungry's communication guide here.

Free Sports Equipment from Level the Playing Field

May is Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month

May is Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month when we celebrate the culture and history of Americans of descent from the Asian continent and the Pacific Islands. Here are some resources to get your celebrations started:

Virginia.Gov: Here you'll a listing of AAPI celebrations and events across the Commonwealth as well as profiles of famous Asian Pacific Americans of Virginia like Jenny Han, author of To All the Boys series, which became a hit movie.

The Library of Virginia has expansive resources on Asian Pacific Islander Desi Americans (APIDAs). This includes a thoughtful and nuanced guide to the diversity of identities and ethnicities encompassed under the APIDA umbrella, including East Asian, South Asian, Southeast Asian, and Pacific Islander, as well as archival resources, literature, and more.

Making the Invisible Visible: Exploring and Teaching the AAPI Experience This on-demand webinar from Facinghistory.org explores the historical and contemporary manifestations of anti-Asian hate and its intersection with white supremacy, as well as the often-overlooked stories of resistance, perseverance, and pride within the Asian American Pacific Islander community.

The Lessons in Adolescents Podcast features a conversation with Barbara Sipe, Jeanine Turner, and Amir Elsayed from Richmond's NextUp RVA. In their conversation, the team talks about how NextUp tracks data to ensure the quality of programming at scale, the impact that the organization is seeing among the students it serves, including early cohorts that are now graduating from high school, how NextUp and its partners have worked to be responsive to student needs. Listen here.

New Report on Equity in OST From Wallace Foundation and UVA Youth Nex

Ensuring equity in the classroom has become a priority for many school districts in recent years. But how are they focusing on equity in their afterschool, summer, and other out-of-school-time (OST) programs as well?

This brief summarizes findings from a team of the University of Virginia researchers who studied how school districts strongly committed to educational equity approached equity in their OST efforts. Read the full report here.

Donate

Subscribe

Subject: May News: Youth STEM Ambassadors and Pitch Challenge Closing soon!