Four Strategies for Empowering Afterschool Staff | Extended Notes

Empowering Afterschool Staff

By encouraging leadership among staff, you ensure that everyone is committed to creating a successful after school learning experience for every student.

Give yourself a pat on the back! You’ve wrapped up another successful year at your program, and you’re already preparing for the upcoming school year. And, as you reflect on what aspects of your program could use some improving, don’t forget to include staff development to your list.

As program leader, you want staff members who show initiative and think outside the box. By encouraging leadership among staff, you ensure that everyone is committed to creating a successful after school learning experience for every student. The key to inspiring leadership is to create an environment that empowers staff to feel confident about stepping up and taking action.

Check out these four strategies to empower your after school staff:

• Foster open communication. Set up formal ways for staff to regularly provide feedback and communicate ideas, such as weekly team meetings or an online message board.
• Create a culture of innovation. Encourage staff to explore new ideas and take different approaches to teaching and engaging students. Create an environment where staff members feel comfortable to share ideas – even bad ones – without the fear of criticism or insult.
• Clearly define roles. Establish specific roles and responsibilities for each staff member to ensure that everyone works efficiently both within their individual roles and cooperatively as a team.
• Enforce accountability. Create standards for staff, and clearly state the consequences for failure to meet those standards. Consistent reinforcement and rewards motivate staff to do their best.