Engaging your elected officials: Elevating afterschool through site visits

By Dawn Fickett, Director of Afterschool and Summer Learning Programs at R.E.A.C.H. After School Program.

On the August 8, 2025 episode of the Policy Pulse, Dawn Fickett shared her experience hosting site visits for her policymakers. This blog was developed based on her presentation and recommendations to those who are planning site visits of their own.

As a program director, our team works so hard to create amazing experiences for children and families in our programs every day.

Opening up our doors to the community and decision makers and hosting a site visit takes a little extra work, but it has been one of the most critical pieces in community investment and sustainability we have developed for our program. In fact, over time these site visits and continued connections have enabled us to build deep relationships with policy makers and their staff that have kept our doors open and programs running even during challenging times. And kids, parents, and staff enjoy communicating what these programs mean on the ground. Seeing is believing!

I’ve had some success in connecting with my members of Congress and inviting them to visit our programs. Here are a few of my recommendations:

Start local. Don't feel like you have to start at the D.C. level to make these connections. Staff in the district offices filter and funnel information up to the D.C. staff, who then share information with the member. Those relationships are just as important as the relationships with policymakers; sometimes moreso!

Stay organized. When you invite your policymakers, send an email to their scheduler and the staff at the local district office, Include all the information they need: all the logistics including time, date, duration, and location; the activities planned; and a brief agenda. To make a memorable experience, keep a visit short and student-focused. And keep communication inclusive: when sending updated, share them with all relevant district and D.C. staff so everyone stays informed.

Share the basics. During the visit, provide clear, accessible information about afterschool funding, such as 21st Century Community Learning Centers program, and your role in it—never assume the policymaker is already familiar.

Highlight local context. Offer a snapshot of your community’s needs, successes, and stories, so the policymaker can see how your program makes a difference.

Keep the spotlight on the students. While the planning process isn’t necessarily fun, the site visits will be fun. You’re showcasing the very best parts of your program, so emphasize those highlights by sharing what your program is actually doing, day-to-day. Seasoned political staffers don’t get to interact often with kids having fun at programs—seeing your students’ joy and excitement about what they’re learning can be highly effective in winning afterschool advocates. Our kids asked some really fun, great questions, and those interactions were just so heartwarming.

Make the most of the moment, and follow up afterwards. Be sure to take plenty of pictures during the visit; this is a good job to assign one of your program staff, if you’re going to be busy with the visit as it occurs. Put together a brief folder of a few important pieces of information for the policymaker to take back with them—a profile on your program, an infographic showing your local impact, and a piece about afterschool in your state is plenty. Send a thank you note (particularly one created or signed by students) and offer to continue the conversation from the event with the policymaker and their staff.

I encourage you not to feel nervous or worried—you don’t need a deep understanding of  politics. You just need to know about your afterschool program. You are the local expert! Your policymakers, both in Congress and at the state and local levels, need to hear about the impact your program is having on young people, families, and the community.

As we head into Lights On Afterschool season, there’s no better time to reach out and invite your policymakers to attend a Lights On Afterschool event and experience afterschool for themselves!

Advocacy is crucial to ensuring decision-makers invest in afterschool programs, and one of the most effective ways to make the case to elected officials is through hosting a site visit for policymakers and their staff.

Being in a program—seeing the students engaged in fun, hands-on learning activities and talking with parents whose lives are affected by afterschool—can be the key piece that makes a policymaker become an afterschool champion during budget season. We've learned that site visits can really help personalize and humanize the impact of what 21st Century Community Learning Centers dollars are doing for our kids and for our communities.