Alaska Nita M. Lowey 21st Century Community Learning Centers Grant

The Alaska Nita M. Lowey 21st Century Community Learning Centers grant aims to enhance student learning beyond school hours. With approximately $3.7 million available annually, the program focuses on students from high-poverty schools, fostering academic achievement through community learning centers. These centers provide academic support and enrichment activities, such as STEM, arts, and counseling, while encouraging partnerships with local organizations to improve program quality and sustainability. Grants will be awarded for a five-year period, starting in 2025.

Program Purpose and Overview
The Alaska Nita M. Lowey 21st Century Community Learning Centers (21st CCLC) grant provides an opportunity for students to continue to learn new skills and discover new abilities outside of the hours school is in session. The goal of the 21st CCLC program is to raise student academic achievement through the creation and expansion of “community learning centers” that provide students with both academic assistance opportunities and educational enrichment activities designed to complement their regular academic program. Additionally, programming should be intentionally designed to positively impact students’ social, emotional, non-cognitive, and/or life skills that will in turn support increased academic achievement.
The funding, provided by Title IV, Part B of the federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) is particularly targeted to serve students who attend high-poverty and low-performing schools in order to provide equitable access to high-quality educational opportunities and to help students meet the challenging state academic and local standards. Alaska’s programs can serve students in kindergarten through high school.
Regardless of whether the grantee is a school district or community organization, centers are typically located in school buildings, but may also be located in similarly safe and accessible facilities. At centers, academic assistance programming is required and typically involves instruction in English/Language Arts or Math, tutoring, homework help, and/or credit recovery or attainment. A wide variety of engaging educational enrichment activities are allowed, including art, music, STEM, theatre, science, coding, career readiness and competency building, structured physical activities, and cultural activities. Programming can also include opportunities such as counseling, drug and violence prevention, service learning, and the earning of industry- or employer-recognized credentials.
Each center is usually run by a full-time Site Coordinator embedded in the school, though some programs use an added duty Teacher in Charge at each site, all supported by a Coordinator or Director. Other common staff include certified teachers and school paraprofessionals providing instruction after the school day ends. Additionally, applicants are strongly encouraged to partner with a variety of community organizations with the resources and expertise to enhance the variety and quality of activities offered; such partnerships also help with program sustainability.
Programming typically occurs at the end of the regular school day, but can additionally occur before school, in the evening, on weekends, and during summer or other breaks. Transportation is provided to reduce barriers to student attendance. Programs also coordinate other local and federal resources such as USDA’s Child Nutrition Programs to provide healthy snacks or meals for students. Additionally, centers provide the parents of the student participants opportunities and information to increase their engagement in and support for the child’s education.
Programs set performance measures and track their progress in order to determine the impact their efforts are making and to work toward continuous program quality improvement.
Projected Total Amount Available For Awards
Approximately $3,700,000 in annual awards will be available for the Alaska 21st Century Community Learning Centers Grant program. The number of grants and the grant amounts will be based on the number and quality of proposals submitted and federal appropriations. It is estimated that the department will award six to nine grants in this competition.