FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact: Kate Jacob, Director of Communications
Prime Time Palm Beach County
(561)732-8066
kjacob@primetimepbc.org
BOYNTON BEACH, FL - The White-Riley-Peterson (WRP) Policy Fellowship in Greenville, South Carolina, has selected 16 afterschool leaders from across the nation, including Prime Time’s Senior Quality Advisor Anita Winkis, to participate in this prestigious 10-month program designed to equip fellows with the policy knowledge to effectively advocate for afterschool and summer programs. The Fellowship creates opportunities for a nationwide network of leaders to harness their collective expertise to expand and improve afterschool and summer learning programming.
Offered by the Riley Institute at Furman University and funded by the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, the WRP Fellowship is in its thirteenth year and has graduated 192 leaders from all 50 states. The latest cohort of WRP Fellows will participate in a hybrid program combining virtual and in-person classes that will consider how to establish state-level funding mechanisms and funding streams and how to identify and set state priorities to support expanded and afterschool learning, among other topics.
“Working very close to afterschool professionals for more than 10 years will allow me bring their voice front and center as I enter into this great opportunity. I am humbled and honored to have been selected as a Fellow and look forward to learning all I can to improve OST experiences for young people,” said Anita Winkis (pictured below), senior quality advisor, Prime Time Palm Beach County.
Over the course of 10 months, WRP fellows will learn from policy experts from across the country and have access to national networking opportunities made possible by the Afterschool Alliance and the 50 State Afterschool Network. Fellows will put these new policy skills to use as they develop and launch a range of afterschool-related policy projects in their home states. Past WRP projects have educated local and state leaders across the country about the use of billions in afterschool dollars and have resulted in greater prioritization of learning opportunities outside of the regular school day.
“Our past WRP Fellows have an impressive track record conveying the importance of afterschool and summer learning across all states and securing significant investments in this critical component of our public education system,” said Sara Beanblossom, director of the White-Riley-Peterson Policy Fellowship. “I am excited to see what this new group of leaders will accomplish in their home states and beyond. By fostering a nationwide coalition of visionary leaders and policy advocates in this space, we are supporting American families and enriching the educational experiences of children and youth across the country.”
The 2024-25 White-Riley-Peterson Policy Fellows are:
· Anna McGovern (Alaska) Program Specialist, Alaska Afterschool Network
· Lupita Perez (California) Senior Specialist, AfterSchool Network
· Kenyatta Livingston (Delaware) Director of Community and Family Service, United Way of Delaware
· Anita Winkis (Florida) Senior Quality Advisor, Prime Time Palm Beach County, Inc.
· Casey Agena (Hawaii) Office of Curriculum and Instructional Design, Hawai'i Department of Education
· Nikki Gillani (Illinois) School Partnerships Manager, ACT Now Illinois
· Sarah Pratt (New Mexico) Director of Operations, New Mexico Out-of-School Time Network
· Maggie Dickson (New York) Director of Public Policy, Alliance of New York State YMCAs
· Kim Keith (North Carolina) Vice President of Youth Development, YMCA
· Becky Eberhardt (North Dakota) Director of School Relations, Waterford
· Kasey Morgan (Ohio) Chief Strategy Officer, MyCom Cleveland
· Nick Washington (South Carolina) Program Director, Original Six Foundation
· Pam Lange (South Dakota) Deputy Executive Director, Director of Community and Family Services, Black Hills Special Services Cooperative (BHSSC)
· Caitlin Brown (Virginia) Executive Director, Alexandria Beyond the Classroom
· Fahren Johnson (Washington) Strategy & Partnerships Director, School's Out Washington
· Dan Gage (Wisconsin) Policy and Advocacy, Wisconsin Out of School Time Alliance (WOSTA)
The White-Riley-Peterson Policy Fellowship is named for Secretary Riley; William S. White, the late chairman of the board of trustees of the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation; and Terry Peterson, national board chair of the Afterschool Alliance and senior fellow at the Riley Institute and the College of Charleston.
About Prime Time Palm Beach County
The mission of Prime Time Palm Beach County, Inc. is to help children and youth succeed by strengthening and expanding quality in the out-of-school time field. Prime Time offers support to OST programs through coaching and assessment for continuous quality improvement, as well as program enrichment through its expanded learning providers. For the individual practitioners, Prime Time offers career advising, training, scholarships and financial incentives to increase the quality of out-of-school time programs in Palm Beach County. www.primetimepbc.org
About the Riley Institute at Furman University
The Riley Institute empowers emerging and established leaders—across sectors and throughout society—with the knowledge and tools to advance equity and drive social and economic progress in South Carolina and beyond. We work to strengthen public education; promote the power of diversity to help teams, organizations, and communities thrive; and elevate informed, evidence-based approaches to critical public issues. In all it does, the institute is committed to nonpartisanship and a bias-free path to change. Learn more at furman.edu/riley.
About the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation
The Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, established in 1926 in Flint, Michigan, by an automotive pioneer, is a private philanthropy committed to supporting projects that promote a just, equitable and sustainable society. It supports nonprofit programs throughout the United States and, on a limited basis, internationally. Grantmaking is focused in four programs: Civil Society, Education, Environment and Flint Area. In addition to Flint, offices are located in metropolitan Detroit, Johannesburg, and London. For more information, visit www.mott.org.
