21st CCLC Century Community Learning Centers NTAC National Technical Assistance Center -

EXTERNAL RESOURCE LIBRARY

Here you’ll find free resources from government agencies, nongovernmental organizations, and others in the field, curated by our team with 21st CCLC professionals in mind. The external resource library includes videos, web pages, publications, and more to help you learn about and implement evidence-based strategies and best practices. All were screened for their relevance to out-of-school time, and many are specific to 21st CCLC programs.

Featured External Resources

Looking for a resource in one of these 21st CCLC NTAC priority areas? Select each link to see a highlighted resource in that area.
Note: Selecting a link will take you to an external website.

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External Resource Library

Developmental Assets Framework

Grounded in extensive research on youth development, resiliency, and prevention, this framework outlines 40 positive supports and strengths that young people need to succeed. Half of the assets are external, focusing on the relationships and opportunities they need in their families, schools, and communities. The other half are internal, focusing on the strengths, values, and commitments that are nurtured within young people. Out-of-school time programs can use this framework to assess how well they are providing community-based relationships and opportunities and to assess what assets struggling students may be lacking.

  • Source: Search Institute
  • Resource Type: Research
  • Year: 2006
Dual Language Immersion Project Playbooks

These playbooks provide a road map for the creation, design, and adoption of policies, processes, programs, and practices that State and local educational agencies, nonprofit organizations, families, and communities need to support and implement high-quality, effective, inclusive, and evidence-based dual language immersion programs.

  • Source: National Clearinghouse for English Language Acquisition
  • Resource Type: Best Practices, Evidence-Based Practices, Implementation Strategies
  • Year: 2024
Education Development Center’s (EDC) Out-of-School Time Resources

This webpage describes and links to projects, resources, and publications specific to out-of-school time from the EDC, a global nonprofit organization.

  • Source: Education Development Center (EDC)
  • Resource Type: Best Practices, Evidence-Based Practices, Implementation Strategies, Innovation and Best Practices, Leadership and Management Practices, Research
Engaging Corporate Volunteers in Student Support Roles

This toolkit is intended to help out-of-school time programs, nonprofits, schools, and school districts consider where and how to bring corporate volunteers in to serve as tutors, mentors, student success coaches, student support coordinators, and/or postsecondary transition coaches.

  • Source: National Partnership for Student Success
  • Resource Type: Implementation Strategies, Innovation and Best Practices, Leadership and Management Practices
  • Year: 2023
English Learner Family Toolkit

This toolkit was created to help families of English learners choose education services that meet their children’s needs. Out-ofschool time programs may share the toolkit as a resource for English learners and their families.

  • Source: National Clearinghouse for English Language Acquisition
  • Resource Type: Best Practices, Implementation Strategies
  • Year: 2023
Establishing Partnerships for Community-Engaged Learning: A Guiding Rubric for Collaborating Organizations

This rubric helps nonprofit organizations, school districts, and higher education institutions align tutoring, mentoring, postsecondary transition coaching, student success coaching, and support coordination programs with community-engaged learning principles. It addresses six elements: reciprocity, academic or career integration, reflection, sustained collaboration, public impact, and mutual understanding.

  • Source: Partnership for Student Success
  • Resource Type: Implementation Strategies, Leadership and Management Practices
  • Year: 2026
Evidence-Based Practice to Accelerate Student Learning

This user-friendly webpage explains the U.S. Department of Education's five-step process for using evidence-based practices to support student learning and learning recovery. It provides guidance on how to identify local needs, select and implement relevant evidence-based practices, and examine and reflect on the outcomes associated with a practice's use.

  • Source: Institute of Education Sciences
  • Resource Type: Evidence-Based Practices
Executive Functions, Part 1: Understanding Why Some Students Struggle

This one-hour training module explores executive functions and explains why many students struggle with cognitive processes related to learning. It then examines why it's critical for teachers to explicitly teach these students when, where, and how to use effective study strategies.

  • Source: IRIS Center at Vanderbilt University's Peabody College
  • Resource Type: Implementation Strategies, Research
  • Year: 2022
Executive Functions, Part 2: Strategies to Improve Students’ Academic Performance

This 2.5-hour training module is a companion to the Executive Functions Part 1 module. It includes strategies that can help students who have difficulty with executive functions, such as time management and focus. These strategies include graphic organizers, notetaking, mnemonics, organization of materials, time management, comprehension strategies, and self-regulation strategies.

  • Source: IRIS Center at Vanderbilt University's Peabody College
  • Resource Type: Implementation Strategies, Research
  • Year: 2022
Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP)

This webpage describes the GEAR UP discretionary grant program, which may be of interest to out-of-school time programs focusing on career prep. GEAR UP provides grants to States and partnerships seeking to prepare low-income middle and high schools to enter and succeed in postsecondary education.

  • Source: U.S. Department of Education
  • Resource Type: Leadership and Management Practices
Guidance for Faith-Based and Other Neighborhood Organizations

This webpage is for contractors and neighborhood organizations, including faith-based organizations, that provide program services to beneficiaries under a grant or subgrant. The stated purpose for the page is to provide a clear and uniform understanding of the fundamental principles that apply to award recipients, along with guidance and regulations for implementing their awards.

  • Source: U.S. Department of Education
  • Resource Type: Policy/Guidance Documents
Healthier Generation's Healthy Out-of-School Time (HOST) Initiative

This webpage provides access to the HOST Assessment and other tools to help OST programs plan and implement best practices to create a healthier OST environment for students.

  • Source: Healthier Generation
  • Resource Type: Evidence-Based Practices, Implementation Strategies, Innovation and Best Practices, Research
  • Year: 2023
Developmental Assets Framework

Grounded in extensive research on youth development, resiliency, and prevention, this framework outlines 40 positive supports and strengths that young people need to succeed. Half of the assets are external, focusing on the relationships and opportunities they need in their families, schools, and communities. The other half are internal, focusing on the strengths, values, and commitments that are nurtured within young people. Out-of-school time programs can use this framework to assess how well they are providing community-based relationships and opportunities and to assess what assets struggling students may be lacking.

  • Source: Search Institute
  • Resource Type: Research
  • Year: 2006
Dual Language Immersion Project Playbooks

These playbooks provide a road map for the creation, design, and adoption of policies, processes, programs, and practices that State and local educational agencies, nonprofit organizations, families, and communities need to support and implement high-quality, effective, inclusive, and evidence-based dual language immersion programs.

  • Source: National Clearinghouse for English Language Acquisition
  • Resource Type: Best Practices, Evidence-Based Practices, Implementation Strategies
  • Year: 2024
Education Development Center’s (EDC) Out-of-School Time Resources

This webpage describes and links to projects, resources, and publications specific to out-of-school time from the EDC, a global nonprofit organization.

  • Source: Education Development Center (EDC)
  • Resource Type: Best Practices, Evidence-Based Practices, Implementation Strategies, Innovation and Best Practices, Leadership and Management Practices, Research
Engaging Corporate Volunteers in Student Support Roles

This toolkit is intended to help out-of-school time programs, nonprofits, schools, and school districts consider where and how to bring corporate volunteers in to serve as tutors, mentors, student success coaches, student support coordinators, and/or postsecondary transition coaches.

  • Source: National Partnership for Student Success
  • Resource Type: Implementation Strategies, Innovation and Best Practices, Leadership and Management Practices
  • Year: 2023
English Learner Family Toolkit

This toolkit was created to help families of English learners choose education services that meet their children’s needs. Out-ofschool time programs may share the toolkit as a resource for English learners and their families.

  • Source: National Clearinghouse for English Language Acquisition
  • Resource Type: Best Practices, Implementation Strategies
  • Year: 2023
Establishing Partnerships for Community-Engaged Learning: A Guiding Rubric for Collaborating Organizations

This rubric helps nonprofit organizations, school districts, and higher education institutions align tutoring, mentoring, postsecondary transition coaching, student success coaching, and support coordination programs with community-engaged learning principles. It addresses six elements: reciprocity, academic or career integration, reflection, sustained collaboration, public impact, and mutual understanding.

  • Source: Partnership for Student Success
  • Resource Type: Implementation Strategies, Leadership and Management Practices
  • Year: 2026
Evidence-Based Practice to Accelerate Student Learning

This user-friendly webpage explains the U.S. Department of Education's five-step process for using evidence-based practices to support student learning and learning recovery. It provides guidance on how to identify local needs, select and implement relevant evidence-based practices, and examine and reflect on the outcomes associated with a practice's use.

  • Source: Institute of Education Sciences
  • Resource Type: Evidence-Based Practices
Executive Functions, Part 1: Understanding Why Some Students Struggle

This one-hour training module explores executive functions and explains why many students struggle with cognitive processes related to learning. It then examines why it's critical for teachers to explicitly teach these students when, where, and how to use effective study strategies.

  • Source: IRIS Center at Vanderbilt University's Peabody College
  • Resource Type: Implementation Strategies, Research
  • Year: 2022
Executive Functions, Part 2: Strategies to Improve Students’ Academic Performance

This 2.5-hour training module is a companion to the Executive Functions Part 1 module. It includes strategies that can help students who have difficulty with executive functions, such as time management and focus. These strategies include graphic organizers, notetaking, mnemonics, organization of materials, time management, comprehension strategies, and self-regulation strategies.

  • Source: IRIS Center at Vanderbilt University's Peabody College
  • Resource Type: Implementation Strategies, Research
  • Year: 2022
Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP)

This webpage describes the GEAR UP discretionary grant program, which may be of interest to out-of-school time programs focusing on career prep. GEAR UP provides grants to States and partnerships seeking to prepare low-income middle and high schools to enter and succeed in postsecondary education.

  • Source: U.S. Department of Education
  • Resource Type: Leadership and Management Practices
Guidance for Faith-Based and Other Neighborhood Organizations

This webpage is for contractors and neighborhood organizations, including faith-based organizations, that provide program services to beneficiaries under a grant or subgrant. The stated purpose for the page is to provide a clear and uniform understanding of the fundamental principles that apply to award recipients, along with guidance and regulations for implementing their awards.

  • Source: U.S. Department of Education
  • Resource Type: Policy/Guidance Documents
Healthier Generation's Healthy Out-of-School Time (HOST) Initiative

This webpage provides access to the HOST Assessment and other tools to help OST programs plan and implement best practices to create a healthier OST environment for students.

  • Source: Healthier Generation
  • Resource Type: Evidence-Based Practices, Implementation Strategies, Innovation and Best Practices, Research
  • Year: 2023
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This resource was developed by the Nita M. Lowey 21st Century Community Learning Centers (21st CCLC) National Technical Assistance Center (NTAC), funded under a grant from the U.S. Department of Education (Department) and administered by Synergy Enterprises, Inc. under Cooperative Agreement No. 287E230009 with the Department’s Office of Elementary and Secondary Education. Opinions expressed herein do not necessarily reflect the position or policy of the Department, nor does mention of trade names, commercial products, or organizations imply endorsement by the Department or the Federal government. The 21st CCLC NTAC project officers are Dr. La' Shawndra Scroggins and Ms. Andrea Jackson.