Aspire! Afterschool Learning

Overview
Headquarters: 
Arlington, VA, USA
Website: 
aspireafterschool.org
Size: 
1-10 employees
Founded: 
1994
Annual Budget : 
$500,000-1M
Areas of Focus: 
Education
Youth / Children
Community Service / Capacity Building / Volunteerism
Populations Served: 
African-American
Children and Youth
Families
Immigrants
Latino/Hispanic
Low Income
About Us
Mission: 

Aspire! has a strong track-record of achieving results for its students. It achieves remarkable results by connecting the three main aspects of a child's daily experience: at school, after school, and at home.

Programs: 

Afterschool

Aspire!'s award-winning Learning ROCKS! Program supports upper-elementary students' general academic achievement and social-emotional development, placing a heavy emphasis on helping students to develop both their reading skills and a love of reading. 

We get great results! For the past five years, over 90% of our students improved their reading instructional level.

In School

School partnerships are a key part of Aspire!'s success. We partner with the five public elementary schools where our students are enrolled.  Our AmeriCorps Members provide direct service to students in their classrooms in their schools, assisting partner schools as classroom aides, small group facilitators, 1:1 tutors, lunch buddies, and generally offering an extra set of hand to help students in whatever way best meets the needs of the school. Our program staff also maintain weekly office hours and or contact with teachers and school staff. 

At Home

Aspire!'s Parent Connection Program has two primary goals: helping parents to support their children's education and helping them develop their own skills and confidence. Aspire! hosted over 50 workshops last year across four sites with a 94% satisfaction rate.

Awards & Accolades: 
Past 5 years, over 90% improvement
Why Work For Us?: 

Learning ROCKS! is an original Aspire program, serving 100 3rd-5th grade students each day after school across three sites, as well as 100 students during the six-week, full-day summer camp.  The Learning ROCKS! Curriculum focuses heavily on language arts and reading, as well as the following three themes: academic and study skills; life-skills; and community and culture.  Finally, Aspire emphasizes arts and creativity as a means of self-expression for students as well as accessing and internalizing academic content in new and meaningful ways.   The Learning Links AmeriCorps Program provides a critical link across the three main aspects of a child’s daily experience: at school; after school and in the summer; and at home/in the community.  Toward this end, Aspire partners closely with and supports both schools and parents.  Each AmeriCorps Member will work closely with their team to implement the Learning ROCKS! Program, providing expanded learning opportunities to students.  Corps Members are an integral part of the Learning ROCKS! Program, actively planning weekly schedules, implementing lesson plans, leading literature circles and homework groups, and more.

Aspire! places a heavy emphasis on personal and professional development, devoting hours each week to brown bags, lectures and Community of Practice activities, in addition to the 80 hours of training presented upfront. Most AmeriCorps members go on to pursue careers in human services such as teaching and social work among others.

Aspire! has a culture of mutual respect, support and kindness - philosophies that translate well into our classrooms. We are excited to serve our students and families and make them the priority in all that we do. As a small organization, we all wear many hats, which is an exciting part of being a member of our community. We welcome driven individuals who are excited by the idea of learning from and alongside our students and families, while working with them to create the great results we've cultivated through intentional, evidence-based practices.

industry: 
Nonprofit