After running a youth program for 11 years, Jeff joined the Missouri AfterSchool Network to coordinate the Missouri Afterschool Resource Center.  For five years, Jeff and his statewide staff developed the technical assistance and professional development infrastructure that supported the quality improvement efforts of over 200 afterschool programs annually.  In response to the rising needs and interests in providing STEM programming in out-of-school time, Jeff launched Project LIFTOFF (www.ProjectLiftoff.net) as an initiative to secure the resources necessary for quality STEM learning in youth programs.  After hosting annual Afterschool Science Academies and coordinating regional STEM efforts through a consortium of Midwestern Statewide Afterschool Networks, LIFTOFF has grown to develop models for building statewide systems for informal science education.  Jeff and LIFTOFF remain dedicated to elevating science after school through enhanced partnership development, targeted data collection and evaluation, and intentional STEM program quality improvement.