3 Steps Toward an Intentional, Mission-Aligned Afterschool Experience

SPARC Senior Advisor Bob Rojee is passionate about elevating afterschool and care programs in our independent schools. “As auxiliary directors, we need to do better to create a more holistic experience for students,” he says, pointing out that some students can spend 20-30% of their day in afterschool. But when we treat afterschool as an "afterthought," it can impede communication between faculty and staff, neglect necessary staff training, and actually undermine the school's mission.

The answer to creating a mission-aligned, holistic program comes down to intentionality. “Care and enrichment must be designed with the same intentionality as the academic program," Bob says. "It needs to be developmentally appropriate, well-supervised, and thoughtfully resourced.”

While not the same experience as the school day, afterschool requires the same supervision, attention to students' needs, and management of risk. And the need for guidance in the auxiliary world is clear--nearly 100 auxiliary professionals signed up for SPARC's recent webinar, "After-School Programs that Deliver Real Impact." 

“Care and enrichment must be designed with the same intentionality as the academic program. It needs to be developmentally appropriate, well-supervised, and thoughtfully resourced.”

--Bob Rojee, SPARC Senior Advisor

To help auxiliary directors get started, Bob emphasized three crucial aspects of designing an intentional, holistic, and impactful afterschool program.

1. Communication 

Communication in all areas needs to be clear and consistent. This includes conversations between afterschool leadership and division heads, afterschool and families, and afterschool staff and faculty, especially in lower schools. 

"Clear communication strengthens trust," Bob says. Transparency with families is vital to build that trust, which leads to higher satisfaction and better retention rates. Unlike morning drop-off, afterschool pick-up is an opportunity for families to spend a little time in the school, and a chance for afterschool leadership to connect with them more personally.

Conversations between faculty and staff must happen to create continuity. Students can't be properly served if staff aren't aware, for example, that they just moved to a new house, or a divorce is happening in their family, or if they've started a new medication. 

2. Staff Training

The question to ask, according to Bob, is "“What are we investing in our teams in terms of recruiting, onboarding, and training?” To elevate afterschool, it needs to be led and staffed by an experienced team with a clear, mission-aligned vision. 

To hire more experienced staff while still being fiscally responsible, Bob urges auxiliary leadership to think creatively. If you need someone from 3-6pm, is there a department who needs someone part time during the school day? If you can put together a 10am-6pm shift, you could attract an experienced hire with a full-time offer while serving two departments.

"At its best, an afterschool program is not simply supervision. It is a deliberately designed learning environment that nurtures joy, confidence, and lifelong curiosity."

--Bob Rojee, SPARC Senior Advisor

And while well-trained staff is a must, it's also essential to have afterschool leadership that is, as Bob says, "dedicated with clear vision, authority, and alignment with the school’s mission."

3. Stakeholder Support

When it comes to school leadership decision-making, "auxiliary directors need to be in there," Bob says. Getting stakeholders on board with why afterschool needs redesigning--and what you need to accomplish that--is where some auxiliary directors feel like they're hitting a wall.

Another challenge many of our afterschool leaders face is limited access to spaces that fully support creative, engaging learning environments, spaces where afternoon programs can meaningfully complement and extend the school day through intentional, developmentally appropriate programming. 

Bob suggests having conversations that "look at it from the consumer's perspective." Families are paying for an entire school experience for their youth, both day and after. If they pick up a child who is bored from no structured time, tired from too much activity, or had no time to finish homework, they're going to notice. This erodes trust and can lead to lower retention rates.

The baseline should be the student who stays the longest--the entire length of afterschool. A program designed for that student will also serve those who leave earlier. 

And when looking to hire more experienced staff, auxiliary directors can lead up to help school leadership think creatively about hiring--the combining of day and afterschool shifts mentioned earlier. “Maybe you have a young, aspiring professional who needs benefits,” Bob says. "That’s a resource for afterschool," and by finding a shift for them during the day, stakeholders can "get the business office to sign off on giving them enough day hours to become full-time." It's fiscally responsible, enhances afterschool, and benefits multiple departments.

In the end, the goal is creating the best experience for students. As Bob says, "At its best, an afterschool program is not simply supervision. It is a deliberately designed learning environment that nurtures joy, confidence, and lifelong curiosity."

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