cents and did not address specific identify issues faced by children and adolescents who are ethnic minorities.

There is a large group of practitioners, researchers, and policy makers committed to improving the quality and supply of after-school programs for young people. This workshop engaged recognized leaders in the field, and consequently the discussions at the workshop and this summary report reflect only the views of those who participated.

It is important to note that there are a variety of terms used to describe activities and programs for children and adolescents during their out-of-school time. Additional discussion about these differences in terms of both terminology and function can be found later in this summary report. However, for the sake of continuity here, we have chosen to use the term “after-school program.”

Violence among children and adolescents became front-page national news during the late 1990s. Workshop presenter Karen Hein, of the William T. Grant Foundation, pointed out that the highly publicized school shootings that occurred in the communities of Littleton, Colorado, Conyers, Georgia, and Johnsboro, Arkansas, in which children attacked their classmates and teachers, have raised questions about the influence on children and adolescents of how they spend their out-of-school time. Even more widespread, though less publicized, are episodes of violence affecting one or two young people at a time in and around schools throughout the nation. For example, in Washington, D.C., recently, two successful high school students were victims of a drive-by shooting following a basketball game at their school. This football captain and his honor-student girlfriend were just 2 of 17 high school students who met a violent death in the District of Columbia since the school year began in September. Of these 17 slayings, 8 were precipitated by an argument that started at a school and ended in gunfire on a neighborhood street (The Washington Post, February 16, 2000).

Research demonstrates that most delinquent behavior occurs during the after-school hours, from 2:00 to 8:00 p.m. In addition, police and other authorities report that risky behaviors, such as sexual activity and drug and alcohol drug use, as well as juvenile crime, increase significantly

Front Matter (R1-R18)

After-School Programs to Promote Child and Adolescent Development (1-34)

References (35-36)

Appendix: Workshop Agenda and Participants (37-52)

Selected Reports of the Board on Children, Youth, and Families (53-54)