RMC conducts studies and evaluations of youth opportunities, including out-of-school learning experiences, afterschool programs and other informal education programs, such as media-based programs. See also Arts and Culture and Media and Museums.

Highlights

Afterschool Evaluations
Working with PlusTimeNH, which provides support, training, information, and funding for out-of-school youth programs, RMC convened a statewide task force to design a common reporting system for program characteristics and outcomes, developed instruments to track implementation and evaluation data from model sites, and built PlusTime NH's capacity to integrate evaluation activities into its ongoing work. As part of this work, RMC also evaluated academically oriented afterschool programs for Out-of-School Matters! New Hampshire, an initiative funded by the Nellie Mae Education Foundation to offer low-income middle school students high-quality out-of-school programs that increase their academic skills and school performance. Read What's Working in New Hampshire: AfterSchool Learning.

Currier Museum of Art Pilot Program Evaluation
The Currier Museum of Art in Manchester, NH has contracted RMC to evaluate a five-month pilot afterschool art program funded by the federal Institute of Museum and Library Services. The program is a collaboration among PlusTime New Hampshire, five existing afterschool programs, and the Currier's Art Center. The evaluation is assessing gains in participant and family knowledge and appreciation of art and documenting museum outreach and collaboration efforts. 

Summer Opportunities for Middle School Students
In the summer of 2008, RMC conducted a comparative study for the Nellie Mae Education Foundation of out-of-school summer opportunities for middle school students by community income levels. Findings suggest that children of different backgrounds have access to similar types of summer opportunities, but engage at in different levels of intensity.

Evaluation of Children's Public Television Programming
RMC served as evaluator and consultant for many award-winning public television programs aimed at children, including Reading Rainbow, The Puzzle Place, Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, Long Ago and Far Away, Behind the Scenes, DragonflyTV, Ghostwriter, and Arthur, among others. RMC is well-known for its application of child development and learning theory to the interpretation of evaluation findings and for its ability to provide detailed recommendations for shaping and refining programming.