Expanding opportunities for youth beyond school

Young people spend roughly 80% of their waking hours outside of school. These hours are where passions are discovered, identities are shaped, relationships are built, and safe spaces matter most. Yet out-of-school time (OST) funding remains scarce and increasingly unstable. Recent federal and local cuts are shrinking options for families, straining providers, and widening access gaps. At a time when young people need strong community ecosystems, we believe those ecosystems must be strengthened, not allowed to erode.

Sustaining equitable access to OST requires a multi-pronged funding strategy; no single source can meet the scale of demand. RESCHOOL is advancing both system-level and local solutions, collaborating with providers and advocacy partners to protect existing public funding while also leveraging new opportunities, including the federal Education Freedom Tax Credit. With Colorado now opting in, this policy has the potential to unlock new resources for schools, districts, and out-of-school providers and to expand direct-to-family funding beginning in 2027.

At the same time, we continue investing directly in families and communities. Through Pick-a-Passes, families receive year-long access to cultural institutions and state parks that might otherwise be out of reach. Through Learning Dollars, families receive direct funding to choose learning experiences aligned with their children’s interests and needs. Together, these strategies strengthen the broader ecosystem while ensuring families have meaningful options today.

What we’re learning from Learning Dollars and Pick-a-Passes in Colorado

In 2025, RESCHOOL:

  • Reached 100+ youth and families with Learning Dollars and Pick-a-Passes
  • Supported eight learning providers to expand programming in communities where families in our network live
  • Resourced two community-based partners to serve as learner advocates, helping families navigate access to funding
  • Expanded access across Denver, Jefferson County, Thornton, and Commerce City

One place where this work came to life in 2025 was Jefferson County.

In 2025, RESCHOOL partnered with community organizations in Jefferson County to pilot a privately funded Learning Dollars program. The goal was straightforward: give families flexible resources and support so their children could access high-quality learning experiences beyond school.

A few things defined this approach:

  • Funds went directly to families and out-of-school providers.

Families received Learning Dollars they could use for programs that fit their child, like sports, arts, tutoring, outdoor programs, cultural experiences, and more. Community-based out-of-school providers also received funding to expand or adapt offerings for families in RESCHOOL’s network.

  • Choice was guided, not scripted.

Instead of prescribing a narrow list of programs, families had the freedom to use their funds in ways that furthered their children’t interests and needs. To the extent families needed support accessing options, we focused on helping them identify what mattered most – schedule, transportation, cultural fit, their child’s interests – and then match those priorities with actual options.

  • Community partners were at the center.

Local providers, schools, and community organizations helped shape the design and outreach. They weren’t just “vendors,” they were co-designers and trusted messengers.

The JeffCo fund was one of three funds that RESCHOOL ran last year. Across these three funds, RESCHOOL raised $125,000 in philanthropic funding to expand opportunities for youth in various communities in and around Denver in 2025:

These dollars translated into concrete opportunities: sports leagues, summer and after-school programs, arts and outdoor experiences, and access to museums and cultural institutions. Families repeatedly told us it was one of the first times a system felt designed around what they needed, instead of asking them to squeeze into a narrow set of options.

Across those funds, the core pattern is the same: When dollars are flexible, paired with navigation support, and rooted in community relationships, they reach the kids they’re supposed to reach.

Why This Matters Now: A New Federal Tax Credit 

This work is happening as the new federal Education Freedom Tax Credit moves toward implementation, with Colorado among the states opting in. The program is designed to offer tax credits for contributions that can be used for both private school choice and enrichment/out-of-school learning for public school students.

The federal tax credit, expected to go live in early 2027, will allow Colorado to:

  • Attract new investment in our education system from individual donors 
  • Fill persistent funding gaps, including for out-of-school learning 
  • Provide a steady funding source to resource school districts and OST providers interested in participating in the program
  • Align philanthropic dollars with Colorado’s education, workforce, and student success priorities

RESCHOOL will be working hard with our partners and the state to ensure that the rollout of this program reflects what we’ve learned over the years working in partnership with communities, that it is designed in such a way that it reaches all families – especially those who face greater barriers to access, and that it gives families genuine agency in how to use the dollars they receive.

Design Principles For Public Funding That Actually Reaches Families

Based on what we’ve learned and what broader OST research confirms, a few design principles stand out. These are questions every public funding model, including tax credits and other choice programs, should be able to answer.

1. Start with what families say they need

Too many programs start with a funding mechanism and work backwards. Direct-to-family models flip that script. Public programs should build in listening and co-design with families who face the greatest barriers, use tools like the Family Choice Journal to surface priorities like safety, culture, logistics, and interests, and share information in clear, multilingual formats. If a funding model is hard to understand or navigate, it will quietly exclude the families it is supposed to serve.

2. Pair dollars with navigation and relationship-based support

Money alone is not enough when systems are complex. Our pilots show that trusted navigators and community-based staff are critical in helping families understand what funds can be used for, compare options, and solve for barriers like transportation, forms, or digital access. Public programs should treat navigation as a core cost, not an optional add-on, or benefits will skew toward families who already have time, information, and networks.

3. Fund a whole ecosystem, not just single programs

Families use Learning Dollars for sports, arts, tutoring, outdoor experiences, cultural institutions, and workforce-connected opportunities. That diversity is a strength. Public funding should recognize community-based organizations and cultural institutions as essential parts of the learning ecosystem, make it feasible for smaller organizations to participate, and invest in tools like the Denver Learning Ecosystem so families and partners can see what exists and where gaps remain. If we want young people to have a rich mix of experiences, we have to fund the ecosystem that makes those experiences possible.

4. Treat pilots as R&D for public systems

Pilots should be understood as research and development, not side projects. The core questions are: What did we learn about how funds were used? Who did we reach, and who did we miss? What would it take to move from a privately funded pilot to a sustainable, equitable public program? Keeping those questions at the center helps ensure innovation is tied to equity and scale, rather than happening on the margins.

What Comes Next

In 2026, RESCHOOL will keep using private funds to test models that show what’s possible when families are truly in the driver’s seat. At the same time, we’ll be working with partners to explore how future public funding, including the federal tax credit and related state policies, can be designed in ways that:

  • Direct resources to families and community providers
  • Build navigation and ecosystem infrastructure, not just isolated programs
  • Close, rather than widen, existing gaps in access and opportunity

If you’re a funder, policymaker, provider, or intermediary thinking about the future of out-of-school learning in Colorado, we’d like to be in conversation with you.

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