The Philadelphia Mayor’s Office of Education, School District of Philadelphia, and Office of Children and Youth engaged Research for Action and our consulting three partners – Bloom Planning, ImpactEd, and Mile 2 Consulting – during the 2024-2025 pilot of the Extended Day Extended Year program. This was a critical year for learning and setting long-term strategies and goals to support expanded learning opportunities in district, charter, and community schools in Philadelphia.
Research for Action led a community-engaged feedback process to understand awareness, communications, satisfaction, concerns, and areas for improvement with school communities, including principals, parents, and caregivers. We provided the first data report on potential access gaps, analyzing the demographics of the students served by EDEY compared to those in the full school. Finally, we developed an extensive national scan of expanded learning research and models to strengthen the evidence guiding EDEY’s implementation and growth. In this rapid engagement, the consulting partners facilitated monthly planning meetings with EDEY leaders to ensure data and evidence informed their development of long-term strategy, governance, and budgeting decisions.