Buckeye Afterschool & Summer Excellence Conference

ROOM: Armstrong 1 | Ohio Approved

PRESENTER: Blythe Coons, Meadowlark

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This interactive, hands-on session builds upon the keynote by encouraging participants to apply the art and science of storytelling in real time. Afterschool professionals will identify meaningful moments from their own programs to begin building a personalized “story bank” they can use for advocacy, family engagement, staff motivation, and funding conversations. Through guided practice, peer collaboration, and supportive feedback, participants will refine their stories for clarity, authenticity, and impact. Participants will also receive live coaching to strengthen their message and delivery.

ROOM: Morgan 1 | Ohio Approved

PRESENTER: Patricia Wicks, MSW, PATHworks

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Hope Relationships™: Building Authentic Supervision and Mentoring Systems helps supervisors and senior staff elevate team engagement and accountability through authentic, equitable relationships. Using the Hope Relationships™ Connect Survey, participants identify growth areas, strengthen communication, and create environments where both adults and young people thrive. Designed for managers, program leaders, and organizational decision-makers seeking to build sustainable, connected teams. supportive, and professional work environment for yourself and your team. Through self-reflection and practical strategies, you’ll strengthen your emotional intelligence, gaining tools to understand and manage your own emotions while effectively supporting others. Participants will leave equipped with actionable techniques to foster trust, communication, and balance—building a positive, emotionally intelligent workplace where everyone feels valued and empowered to thrive.

ROOM: Morgan 2 | Ohio Approved

PRESENTER: Heather Southerington, Grove City Parks and Recreation

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In this engaging and interactive session, Heather will leverage her extensive programming experience, including her work with COSI, Disney, and the Columbus Zoo, to inspire the audience to create enchanting programming experiences. Participants will have the opportunity to become NASA scientists on a mission to capture an alien, cowboys participating in a gold rush, and explorers on an African safari—all without leaving their youth programming room. This adventure is possible with a bit of imagination and a willingness to embrace the child within us! Learn how to integrate academic standards while celebrating the power of play!

ROOM: Morgan 3 | Ohio Approved

PRESENTER: Chelsea Elliott, MSW, Somocom Labs

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True leadership is more than managing—it’s about recognizing the humanity in yourself and others, building genuine emotional connections, and leading with empathy and authenticity. In this workshop, you’ll learn how to create and sustain an emotionally healthy, supportive, and professional work environment for yourself and your team. Through self-reflection and practical strategies, you’ll strengthen your emotional intelligence, gaining tools to understand and manage your own emotions while effectively supporting others. Participants will leave equipped with actionable techniques to foster trust, communication, and balance—building a positive, emotionally intelligent workplace where everyone feels valued and empowered to thrive.

ROOM: Wright 1 | OA Pending

PRESENTER: Jenna Wolfe, YMCA Columbus

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This interactive workshop will guide out-of-school time and youth development professionals through the essential tools for designing successful, enriching field trips. Participants will learn how to build timelines, communicate with families, schedule transportation, and evaluate student interests to ensure meaningful experiences. We will explore strategies for creating community partnerships that support affordable access and extend learning beyond the classroom. Attendees will also receive ready-to-use planning resources, marketing ideas, and implementation tools. Join us to strengthen your program’s field trip approach and create unforgettable experiences for youth across Central Ohio.

ROOM: Wright 2 | Ohio Approved

PRESENTER: Hunter Strickland, Learn Fresh

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Launched in partnership with the MLB Players Trust, MLB Players STEM League is a baseball-inspired program for students in grades 4-8. The program brings the energy of the sport to life through a board game and a curriculum that cultivates students' math and skill-building. The program is FREE for youth development organizations and schools of all types, helping young people build new skills, confidence, and a passion for learning through a fun, engaging program rooted in sport.

ROOM: Armstrong 1 | Ohio Approved

PRESENTER: Lisa Riegel, JAKAPA

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Explore practical ideas for engaging and enriching summer programs that support both youth development and academic growth. Participants will choose a program idea—either provided or their own—and walk it through the 7C Framework: Clarity, Coherence, Cadence, Collaboration, Celebration, Culture, and Continuous Improvement. Together, we’ll examine how to define purpose, align initiatives, build momentum, foster shared ownership, celebrate success, cultivate a sense of belonging, and measure impact. Attendees will leave with a clear, actionable plan to launch a meaningful and sustainable summer experience.

ROOM: Morgan 1 | Ohio Approved

PRESENTER: Patricia Wicks, MSW, PATHworks

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Hope Relationships™: More Than a Mentor explores how authentic connection drives both mentoring and leadership. Participants will apply the four Hope Relationships™ principles—Authenticity, Mutual Respect, Shared Expectations, and Continuous Improvement—to strengthen communication, accountability, and collaboration across youth and team interactions. Ideal for direct service staff, supervisors, and program leaders seeking deeper, more sustainable engagement.

ROOM: Morgan 2 | Ohio Approved

PRESENTER: Rebeccah Verhoff-Kiss, ServeOhio

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Join ServeOhio to learn more about supporting students in volunteer service! Research shows that youth of all ages who participate in service exhibit positive outcomes including improved attendance, better grades, and higher graduation rates. Service also produces positive impacts in prosocial behaviors, is linked to higher self-esteem, increased social support, and fewer depressive symptoms and feelings of isolation. Join ServeOhio to learn more about our brand new resources available to engage youth in service, including an online platform for high school students, service project ideas for all ages, youth service toolkits, funding opportunities, and more!

ROOM: Morgan 3 | Ohio Approved

PRESENTER: Heather Southerington, Grove City Parks and Recreation

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In this hands-on session, participants will learn that establishing a connection with children is essential for positively influencing their behavior. We will identify reasons for misbehavior and explore ways to empower children through our responses. When children feel a sense of belonging and significance, misbehavior often decreases.

ROOM: Wright 1 | Ohio Approved

PRESENTER: Evan Dentley, Already Always Amazing Foundation

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Build a restorative, trauma-informed supervision system that centers relationships and strengths. In 60 minutes, you draft one team agreement, practice core supervision moves, and choose one advocacy step to shift policy or routine next week. Leave with a simple toolkit and three metrics to track: 90-day retention, growth plan conversion, and meeting follow-through. Target audience: OST managers, site leads, directors, and HR partners.

ROOM: Wright 2 | OA Pending

PRESENTER: Tricia Moore, EnvisionEdPlus

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Do young people get paid to participate in your after-school program? Are they earning credentials and accumulating work-based learning hours that help them meet high school graduation requirements? Join this panel discussion to hear how a handful of afterschool programs across Ohio are leveraging the flexibility of afterschool programming to help young people learn skills in real-world work environments, inside and outside of their program centers. Find out how your program can offer industry-recognized credentials, get students paid for their work, and attract new funding while helping young people prepare for their future careers.

ROOM: Armstrong 1 | Ohio Approved

PRESENTER: Valerie Kunze, Ohio Department of Education and Workforce

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Every Ohioan has a role to play in improving student school day attendance. In this session, participants will learn what chronic absence is and how out of school programming can be an important lever for schools and districts to improve daily attendance.

ROOM: Morgan 1 | Ohio Approved

PRESENTER: Kimberly Shibley, OCCRRA

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Bite-Size Lessons are a series of mini-lessons to expand children’s exposure to food and nutrition education. Each lesson provides activity instructions, resources, teacher tips, activity extensions, ideas for involving families, and connections to other learning areas, including math, science, and literacy. During this interactive session, participants will experience several Bite-Sized Lesson activities and discuss strategies for implementing in an out-of-school time setting. They will leave with 12 ready-to-use lessons for children up through third grade.

ROOM: Morgan 2 | Ohio Approved

PRESENTER: Dormetria Robinson Thompson, Omega Community Development Corporation 

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In this current national and state climate, sustainability practices and strategies are needed like never before. Come learn about the plethora of ways you can make your afterschool program stand out while meeting the needs of your scholars and families. 

This session is recommended for all program managers and other leaders who directly impact the quality and operations of afterschool programs.

ROOM: Morgan 3 | Ohio Approved

PRESENTER: Nikki Stancampiano, PAST Foundation

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Out-of-school time programs are uniquely positioned to connect young people with real-world learning experiences—but where do you start? This interactive workshop guides participants through the process of mapping local assets and building authentic partnerships with businesses, industries, and community organizations. Attendees will create a visual asset map of their community, explore a menu of partnership strategies, and leave with a tailored action plan to engage learners through meaningful, mutually beneficial connections. Designed for program leaders and community-based educators, this session supports statewide efforts to bridge learning and workforce pathways.

ROOM: Wright 1 | Ohio Approved

PRESENTER: Leslie Doan, Vivid Coaching and Consulting

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Stop guessing what your team needs! This highly interactive session offers a practical, proven framework for building relational intelligence and maximizing team performance. Using the GiANT Worldwide 5 Voices model, you will immediately discover your natural communication style and understand how others perceive you. This is not a lecture; you will actively engage to build profound self-awareness. Learn to resolve common conflicts, adjust your leadership approach, and leverage each person's unique strengths. Walk away with tangible tools to create a truly inclusive, high-performing team culture.

Who Should Attend: Leaders, Managers, and Individual Contributors seeking tangible growth tools.