Exploring the Supply and Demand for Community Learning Opportunities in Minnesota A Survey of Minnesota Parents and Youth

It is with great pleasure we share the results of this one of a kind study—Exploring Supply and Demand for Community Learning Opportunities in Minnesota. This study was designed to explore Minnesota parent and youth perceptions about afterschool opportunities for young people across the state. In its 2005 report Journeys into Community: Transforming Youth Opportunities for Learning and Development,i the Minnesota Commission on Out of School Time examined the importance of community learning opportunities during the non-school hours. The Commission created a vision for Minnesota where every youth is engaged, every family has access to quality opportunities, and every community has a clear plan and adequate support for such opportunities. Since that report, new research has continued to demonstrate the value of such community learning opportuni-ties and the impact these opportunities can have on academic performance, social and emotional development, safety, and the prevention of risk behaviors.ii The accumulated weight of evidence now indicates that these types of opportunities are no longer just nice but are increasingly an essential contributor to the positive development of youth and their success in formal educational setting. This study, Exploring Supply and Demand for Community Learning Opportunities in Minnesota, finds that fami-lies do not have equal access to quality opportunities (especially during the summer months). This creates an op-portunity gap that significantly contributes to educational and developmental disparities across communities, ethnic, racial, and income groups. These disparities are one of Minnesota’s greatest challenges to the healthy development and education of Minnesota young people. This is a challenge not just for schools but also for cities and towns across Minnesota where community learning opportunities occur. This report will provide a statewide perspective on these issues. Visit the report webpage a