Getting Ready for Change in Out-of-School Time: New Tools, Resources, and a Conversation with Field Leaders on Applying Readiness Thinking in Practice

Research and practical experience suggest that readiness is critical when making a change. In out-of-school time (OST), change can take many forms—from making improvements to existing practices, to implementing new activities, to revamping a program completely—but its success hinges on having strong operations, willing staff, and engaged stakeholders ready to make change happen with integrity and quality.

On February 23, 2023 AIR held a webinar to discuss what readiness is and why it matters, and to hear from OST leaders who are integrating readiness thinking and tools into their work. Participants had the opportunity to hear from researchers at AIR about AIR’s new, free resource, the Ready to Implement Toolkit. The Toolkit is a research-based resource for OST leaders, staff, and teams who want to make data-driven decisions as they prepare for change.

AIR’s development of the Ready to Implement Toolkit was supported by the Susan Crown Exchange and The Wallace Foundation. The Toolkit was developed with input and support from the field to create something useful for the field. We are indebted to our expert OST leaders and staff, and technical and field advisors for their guidance and support.