(a) The Commissioner of Education, in consultation with the Commissioner of Social Services, and the executive director of the Commission on Women, Children and Seniors, shall establish an after school committee.

(b) The after school committee shall be appointed by the Commissioner of Education, in consultation with the Commissioner of Social Services, and the executive director of the Commission on Women, Children and Seniors and shall include, but not be limited to, persons having expertise in after school programs, after school program providers, local elected officials, members of community agencies, members of the business community and professional educators.

(c) The after school committee may report on and make recommendations, including, but not be limited to, the following: (1) Identification of existing state, federal and private resources to support and sustain after school programs; (2) methods and practices to enhance coordination and goal setting among state agencies to achieve efficiencies and to encourage training and local technical assistance with respect to after school programs; (3) identification of best practices; (4) methods of encouraging community-based providers; (5) professional development; (6) measures to address barriers to after school programs; and (7) a private and public governance structure that ensures sustainability for after school programs.

(d) The Commissioner of Education may seek and accept funding from private organizations that do not receive grants or other funding from the Department of Education to implement the provisions of this section.

(e) The after school committee shall report, in accordance with section 11-4a, its findings pursuant to this section to the General Assembly by February 1, 2004.

(f) Not later than February 1, 2019, the after school committee shall submit a report, and any recommendations for legislation, on how to better coordinate, expand, finance and improve the quality, accessibility and affordability of summer and after school programming for school-age children in all settings to the joint standing committees of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to education and appropriations, in accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a.

(P.A. 03-206, S. 1; May Sp. Sess. P.A. 16-3, S. 140; P.A. 18-182, S. 6.)

History: P.A. 03-206 effective July 9, 2003; May Sp. Sess. P.A. 16-3 amended Subsecs. (a) and (b) by replacing “Commission on Children” with “Commission on Women, Children and Seniors”, effective July 1, 2016; P.A. 18-182 added Subsec. (f) re report and recommendations on how to better coordinate, expand, finance and improve quality, accessibility and affordability of summer and after school programming, effective July 1, 2018.