The National Afterschool Association Convention, #NAA24, was a blast in Dallas, TX! It was a week full of connection and community! We started the convention by having our very own Nat Rosales on the main stage, sharing how important it is to #BeInclusive. Nat shared their journey of getting an Autism diagnosis as an adult and the integral role that a culture of belonging played in shaping how they now show up in the world, and how CAN views accessibility. You can watch Nat’s full Story Showcase on NAA’s YouTube channel, starting at 18:37.

Throughout the conference, we hosted, co-hosted, and spoke in a total of 7 workshops. We started Monday off by co-hosting with ASAPConnect on the Power of Partnerships, showcased our Physical Health & Wellness work and how others can coordinate their own Play Day celebrations, and ended the day by sharing our Equity journey as an organization.

On Tuesday, Troy Selvey, Julie Sesser, and Diego Arancibia hosted a podcast-esque session where they explored how to cultivate site-level leadership and the importance of building up site coordinators. Heather Williams co-hosted a session to teach others how to begin to plan, participate, and engage in partnerships to support positive Youth Development. Tiffany Gipson co-hosted a session on how to equitably scale STEM offerings across your program, region, and beyond!

During our final workshop on Wednesday morning, we got to hear from Malia Villarreal about how everyone can be an advocate and ways to start brainstorming your own Policy Framework at your organization.

Thank you to everyone who joined our sessions, or just said hi over the week. We can’t wait to see you all again!