Shared Vision for OST Job Quality in New Jersey

NJSACC, in partnership with the New Jersey Department of Education-Office of Student Support Services, is bringing together New Jersey’s afterschool, out-of-school time (OST), and school-age childcare providers for a conversation about job quality in the OST workforce.

The meeting will begin with an overview of the National Afterschool Association’s Job Quality Standards (JQS) and then move into a facilitated discussion focused on the experiences of providers and the professionals working within OST programs. We want to hear directly from those who operate programs and employ OST professionals: What makes OST positions, quality? What conditions help staff succeed and stay? What barriers make it difficult to provide quality jobs?

Through this focus group-style conversation, participants will help identify the workplace practices, supports, compensation and benefits, professional growth opportunities, organizational conditions, and other factors that contribute to job quality in New Jersey’s OST field.

The feedback gathered will help inform the development of a shared New Jersey framework for OST job quality and support future workforce advocacy, coalition building, and conversations with policymakers and funders.