The goal of the Promising Practices Competition and Showcase is to promote sustainability and high quality programming in the field of afterschool by sharing practices that expand learning time opportunities and foster positive academic achievement, while better preparing students for the 21st Century workforce.

The winning practices were nominated by our nonprofit partners, evaluated independently, and found to work best across New Jersey After 3' s network. This collection of successful strategies and activities are presented to you through presentations, and are accompanied by this booklet, so that other organizations can replicate them easily.

The combined efforts of the winning practices featured here today ultimately lead to high quality programs that benefit New Jersey' s children and families in four main areas:

• Keeping Kids Safe
• Inspiring Student Learning
• Promoting Positive Youth Development
• Supporting Working Families