Blog Archives

Calmer Waters and Brighter Horizons: GetConnected 2022 Welcomes Over 400 Afterschool Learning Leaders and a Heightened Awareness of Expanded Learning 

Nebraska Children and Families Foundation is dedicated to weathering the storm. Although these storms come and go, one thing remains for certain within uncertainty: together, with your support, we can continue to stay afloat and redirect ourselves during rough weather. Beyond School Bells, our afterschool network of dedicated statewide professionals has truly done an incredible job of remaining buoyant during difficult times. For the third time since the pandemic, the team and their partners, the Nebraska Department of Education (NDE), NDE’s 21st Century Community Learning Center, and Nebraska Extension rescheduled GetConnected 2022, their statewide conference of afterschool learning leaders, and on Feb. 25, it was finally able to happen! 

Nebraska Children and Families Foundation is dedicated to weathering the storm. Although these storms come and go, one thing remains for certain within uncertainty: together, with your support, we can continue to stay afloat and redirect ourselves during rough weather. Beyond School Bells, our afterschool network of dedicated statewide professionals has truly done an incredible job of remaining buoyant during difficult times. For the third time since the pandemic, the team and their partners, the Nebraska Department of Education (NDE), NDE’s 21st Century Community Learning Center, and Nebraska Extension rescheduled GetConnected 2022, their statewide conference of afterschool learning leaders, and on Feb. 25, it was finally able to happen! 

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Posted in Middle Childhood, News and Events

2022 Youth Legislative Days Kicks off Another Year Filled with Resounding Young Voices  

“Sit down for just one minute and listen to me. That is what I would want to see changed; not, ‘You go here or here, or if you do this, we will put you here.’ As a kid, you don’t need to be threatened with a placement.”

“Sit down for just one minute and listen to me. That is what I would want to see changed; not, ‘You go here or here, or if you do this, we will put you here.’ As a kid, you don’t need to be threatened with a placement.”

Young leader Jacob Mckirdy is talking about the foster care system and the needs of children and youth who experienced this complicated entity. Read how he and other young leaders participate in Lincoln Legislative Days to make their voices heard about their passions.

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Posted in Legislature, News and Events, Systems

Chance Encounter: Aiesha Rahn Shares How Her Commitment to Helping Families, Being Present, and Making Connections Has Led to Her Current Success

Aiesha Rand doesn't believe in coincidences. In fact, her seemingly chance encounters with various Nebraska Children and Families Foundation staff have led her to where she is today - as an Assistant Vice President of Early Childhood Programs and a recipient of an Endorsement for Culturally Sensitive, Relationship-Focused Practice Promoting Infant & Early Childhood Mental Health®. Read about how a series of surprises have moved Aiesha into her current success and how she recommends you can get there too!

Aiesha Rahn doesn’t believe in coincidences. In fact, her seemingly chance encounters with various Nebraska Children and Families Foundation staff have led her to where she is today – as an Assistant Vice President of Early Childhood Programs and a recipient of an Endorsement for Culturally Sensitive, Relationship-Focused Practice Promoting Infant & Early Childhood Mental Health®. Read about how a series of surprises have moved Aiesha into her current success and how she recommends you can get there too!

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Posted in Early Childhood, News and Events

Just the Beginning: Nebraska 4-H and Beyond School Bells Launch an Intergalactic Afterschool Winternship Program…with More to Come 

In the real world, failure is often viewed as a disappointment. Whether we blame our shortcomings on others or the world at large, when we don’t achieve our goals or embody our envisioned success, we often feel helpless. The good news is Nebraska Children's Beyond School Bells, Nebraska 4-H Youth Development, and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) Honors Program can change this mindset through quality afterschool programming in the form of "winternships" and more!  

In the real world, failure is often viewed as a disappointment. Whether we blame our shortcomings on others or the world at large, when we don’t achieve our goals or embody our envisioned success, we often feel helpless. The good news is Nebraska Children’s Beyond School Bells, Nebraska 4-H Youth Development, and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) Honors Program can change this mindset through quality afterschool programming in the form of “winternships” and more!  

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Posted in Middle Childhood, News and Events

In-Home and Center-Based Providers Agree: Circle of Security Classroom™ Promotes Healthy and Secure Relationships!    

Imagine feeling free to try new things and explore, then being able to re-enter in for reassurance, support, and anything else you need before you set back out again. The whole time, knowing that no matter what you did or where you went, there was always that safe base for you to come back home. Read how our early childhood mental health experts and partners work throughout Nebraska to implement the Circle of Security Classroom (COSP-C™) approach, which helps teachers and childcare providers forge supportive bonds with children!

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Posted in Early Childhood, News and Events

Nothing to Hide: A’zja Reveals How Her Past Gave Her the Strength to Succeed

As a teenager, A’jza escaped her family and hid for three weeks in a friend’s closet. She’s also walked herself to therapy, deciding that she needed mental health support. She learned Omaha’s public transit system as a child, worked a job since she was 12, and has been mistaken for someone almost twice her age – with good reason.  Read about how, with a Connected Youth Initiative and Beyond School Bells internship, this remarkable young woman stepped into a thriving career.

As a teenager, A’jza escaped her family and hid for three weeks in a friend’s closet. She’s also walked herself to therapy, deciding that she needed mental health support. She learned Omaha’s public transit system as a child, worked a job since she was 12, and has been mistaken for someone almost twice her age – with good reason.  Read about how, with a Connected Youth Initiative and Beyond School Bells internship, this remarkable young woman stepped into a thriving career.

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Posted in Uncategorized

Retelling Her Story: Madison Honeyman Uses Her Voice and Connected Youth Initiative’s Internship to Create a New Future for Herself and Other Former Foster Youth 

Madison Honeyman is an activist, youth advocate, and history buff. Best of all, she's retelling her past experiences in the foster care system, thanks to CYI supports to create a better tomorrow for other systems-involved young people.

Madison Honeyman is an activist, slam poet, youth advocate, and history buff. Best of all, she’s retelling her past experiences in the foster care system, thanks to CYI supports to create a better tomorrow for other systems-involved young people.

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Posted in Uncategorized

Saying the Unspoken: Athraa Ayal Describes How She Communicates, Learns, and Engages Children and a New Career, Thanks to her Partnered CYI Internship 

Beyond School Bells and Connected Youth Initiative leverage $150,000 CARES Act dollars and create internships for former foster youth. Read how Iraqi-American former foster youth Athraa Ayal received a full-time job offer, thanks to her Lincoln Public Schools internship. Best of all, the Department of Health and Human Services expanded our contract, so this is just the beginning!

Beyond School Bells and Connected Youth Initiative leverage $150,000 CARES Act dollars and create internships for former foster youth. Read how Iraqi-American former foster youth Athraa Ayal received a full-time job offer, thanks to her Lincoln Public Schools internship. Best of all, the Department of Health and Human Services expanded our contract, so this is just the beginning!

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Posted in Uncategorized

Nebraska Infant Mental Health Forges New Alliance

Holly Hatton-Bowers knows the powerful moment of watching families struggle and trying to build positive bonds from analyzing such interactions. In a practicum where she had to employ video reflection, Hatton-Bowers tells of a woman who described herself as a

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Posted in Early Childhood, Uncategorized

Tiny Toilets, Small Worlds, and Big Partnerships: Boone Beginnings and Communities for Kids Pave the Way for Quality  

Boone Beginnings has been involved with Communities for Kids (C4K) since 2018. The team modeled their program with an impeccable eye for detail and other preexisting centers as examples. And yes, that includes everything down to the tiny toilets. Read the good, the challenging and the funny parts behind Boone Beginnings' quality childcare journey.

Boone Beginnings has been involved with Communities for Kids (C4K) since 2018. The team modeled their program with an impeccable eye for detail and other preexisting centers as examples. And yes, that includes everything down to the tiny toilets. Read the good, the challenging and the funny parts behind Boone Beginnings’ quality childcare journey.  

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Posted in Early Childhood, News and Events
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