Afterschool Caucuses

The Afterschool Caucuses in the Senate and the House of Representatives were established in order to build support for afterschool programs and increase resources for afterschool care. [http://www.afterschoolalliance.org/press_archives/Cong_Caucus_03032005.pdf] Senators Christopher Dodd (D-CT) and John Ensign (R-NV) and Representatives Nita Lowey (D-NY) and Ralph Regula (R-OH) serve as co-chairs of the bipartisan Caucuses. [http://www.afterschoolalliance.org/policyCongressionalCaucuses.cfm]

History

The House and Senate Afterschool Caucuses were founded on March 3, 2005. [http://www.connectforkids.org/node/2846] In addition to the co-chairs, the founding members of Senate and House Afterschool Caucuses are Senators Barbara Boxer (D-CA) and Susan Collins (R-ME) and Representative Dale Kildee (D-MI). Today, these Caucuses serve as a voice on the issue of strengthening and increasing the availability of afterschool programs. Ninety Representatives are members of the House Afterschool Caucus and thirty-eight Senators are members of the Senate Afterschool Caucus. [http://www.afterschoolalliance.org/policyCongressionalCaucuses.cfm]

Purpose

The Caucuses were formed in response to the finding that 14.3 million children go home alone after the school day ends, including more than 40,000 kindergartners and almost four million middle school students in grades six to eight. [http://www.edutopia.org/fourteen-million-kids-unsupervised] The Caucuses act to promote the availability of afterschool programs, with a special emphasis on the 21st Century Community Learning Center (CCLC) program, for every American school-age child by increasing public awareness of such programs and supporting increased federal resources. In each chamber, the Caucuses have conducted a variety of activities supporting the goal of quality, affordable programs for all children. This has included organizing congressional briefings on specific topics such as the role of the STEM fields in afterschool (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) education; [http://youthtech.wordpress.com/2006/09/29/science-math-keys-for-afterschool-activity/] disseminating letters in support of increased resources for afterschool to the President as well as congressional colleagues; [http://www.afterschoolalliance.org/documents/Kildee_Kuhl_signers.pdf] sharing new research on effective programs; and organizing press events around the [http://www.afterschoolalliance.org/challenge.cfm Afterschool Challenge] with celebrity supporters.

The Afterschool Caucuses seek to educate the public on the role that afterschool programs play in the lives of families, and promote the expansion of federal, state, and local support in order to make access to these programs a reality for all interested children and families.

Membership

The Afterschool Caucuses are nonpartisan. As of fall, 2008 there were a total of 90 members in the House Afterschool Caucus with 74 Democrats and 16 Republicans, and 38 members of the Senate Afterschool Caucus with 8 Republicans, 2 Independents and 28 Democrats. [http://www.afterschoolalliance.org/policyCongressionalCaucuses.cfm]

United States House of Representatives:

#Rep. Nita Lowey (D-NY), Co-Chair
#Rep. Ralph Regula (R-OH), Co-Chair
#Rep. Dale Kildee (D-MI), Founding Member
#Rep. Tom Allen (D-ME)
#Rep. Michael Arcuri (D-NY)
#Rep. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI)
#Rep. John Barrow (D-GA)
#Rep. Shelley Berkley (D-NV)
#Rep. Tim Bishop (D-NY)
#Rep. John Boozman (R-AR)
#Rep. Rick Boucher (D-VA)
#Rep. Corrine Brown (D-FL)
#Rep. Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV)
#Rep. Dennis Cardoza (D-CA)
#Rep. Andre Carson (D-IN)
#Rep. Michael Castle (R-DE)
#Rep. Ben Chandler (D-KY)
#Rep. John Conyers (D-MI)
#Rep. Jim Cooper (D-TN)
#Rep. Joe Courtney (D-CT)
#Rep. Barbara Cubin (R-WY)
#Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-TX)
#Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-MD)
#Rep. Susan Davis (D-CA)
#Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT)
#Rep. Lincoln Diaz-Balart (R-FL)
#Rep. Norm Dicks (D-WA)
#Rep. Joe Donnelly (D-IN)
#Rep. Chet Edwards (D-TX)
#Rep. Vernon Ehlers (R-MI)
#Rep. Phil English (R-PA)
#Rep. Bob Filner (D-CA)
#Rep. Bill Foster (D-IL)
#Rep. Jim Gerlach (R-PA)
#Rep. Charles Gonzalez (D-TX)
#Rep. Bart Gordon (D-TN)
#Rep. Al Green (D-TX)
#Rep. Gene Green (D-TX)
#Rep. Alcee Hastings (D-FL)
#Rep. Stephanie Herseth (D-SD)
#Rep. Brian Higgins (D-NY)
#Rep. Ruben Hinojosa (D-TX)
#Rep. Rush D. Holt, Jr. (D-NJ)
#Rep. Sheila Jackson-Lee (D-TX)
#Rep. William J. Jefferson (D-LA)
#Rep. Paul Kanjorski (D-PA)
#Rep. Patrick J. Kennedy (D-RI)
#Rep. Randy Kuhl (R-NY)
#Rep. Jim Langevin (D-RI)
#Rep. Rick Larsen (D-WA)
#Rep. John Larson (D-CT)
#Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA)
#Rep. John Lewis (D-GA)
#Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA)
#Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-MA)
#Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY)
#Rep. Doris Matsui (D-CA)
#Rep. Betty McCollum (D-MN)
#Rep. Jim McDermott (D-WA)
#Rep. Jim McGovern (D-MA)
#Rep. Greg Meeks (D-NY)
#Rep. Michael Michaud (D-ME)
#Rep. Jim Moran (D-VA)
#Rep. Jerry Moran (R-KS)
#Rep. Richard Neal (D-MA)
#Rep. Solomon Ortiz (D-TX)
#Rep. Donald M. Payne (D-NJ)
#Rep. Todd Platts (R-PA)
#Rep. David Price (D-NC)
#Rep. Charlie Rangel (D-NY)
#Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL)
#Rep. Mike Ross (D-AR)
#Rep. Bobby Rush (D-IL)
#Rep. Tim Ryan (D-OH)
#Rep. Janice Schakowsky (D-IL)
#Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA)
#Rep. Jose Serrano (D-NY)
#Rep. Mike Simpson (R-ID)
#Rep. Louise Slaughter (D-NY)
#Rep. Adam Smith (D-WA)
#Rep. John Spratt (D-SC)
#Rep. Betty Sutton (D-OH)
#Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS)
#Rep. Tom Udall (D-NM)
#Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD)
#Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL)
#Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA)
#Rep. Edward Whitfield (R-KY)
#Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC)
#Rep. Bill Young (R-FL)

United States Senate:

#Christopher J. Dodd (D-CT), Chair
#John Ensign (R-NV), Chair
#Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Founding Member
#Susan M. Collins (R-ME), Founding Member
#Daniel K. Akaka (D-HI)
#Max Baucus (D-MT)
#Evan Bayh (D-IN)
#Joseph Biden (D-DE)
#Thad Cochran (R-MS)
#Maria Cantwell (D-WA)
#Bob Casey, Jr. (D-PA)
#Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY)
#Kent Conrad (D-ND)
#Richard Durbin (D-IL)
#Dianne Feinstein (D-CA)
#Orrin G. Hatch (R-UT)
#Tim Johnson (D-SD)
#Edward M. Kennedy (D-MA)
#John Kerry (D-MA)
#Herb Kohl (D-WI)
#Mary L. Landrieu (D-LA)
#Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ)
#Joe Lieberman (I-CT)
#Blanche Lincoln (D-AR)
#Robert Menendez (D-NJ)
#Barbara A. Mikulski (D-MD)
#Lisa Murkowski (R-AK)
#Patty Murray (D-WA)
#Ben Nelson (D-NE)
#Jack Reed (D-RI)
#Ken Salazar (D-CO)
#Bernard Sanders (I-VT)
#Chuck Schumer (D-NY)
#Olympia Snowe (R-ME)
#Arlen Specter (R-PA)
#Debbie Stabenow (D-MI)
#John Thune (R-SD)
#Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI)

References