Why After School Programs?

More than ever meeting the needs of kids after school is a joint responsibility of families, communities, and government.

The need for learning opportunities that extend beyond the school day is based on three very real social and public policy issues:

1) Kids require extra supports to meet more astringent education standards. Students attending after school programs show improvement in their grades, test scores and graduation rates.

2) A shifting workforce necessitates the employment of both parents. National trends show that more parents are entering the workforce and as a result an increasing number of children are spending the after school hours unsupervised.

3) There are safety concerns for students that are alone between the end of their school day and the end of their parents’ work day. The gap between work schedules and school schedules is estimated to be as large as 20 to 25 hours a week.

I was fortunate as kid. When I came home from school there were many activities to get involved in. Thanks to many surrogate dads I played sports. Football, basketball, baseball and other backyard games with other kids kept me out of trouble...well mostly anway. Most of these backyard games had dubious rules. The bully in charge changed them to insure he'd win. In any event kids today don't play together. How many softball fields are growing way too much grass in the infields? Kids don't get together to play sandlot football. Basketball is still played but all kids can't play basketball.

So you can see why we need programming at the end of the school day. I'm very proud that Say Yes To Tennis helps so many kids in this regard.

Nearly 30,590 of Ohio's kids are counting on the programs supported by the U.S. Department of Education's 21st Century Community Learning Centers initiative, the only federal program dedicated to after school. One such 21st Century Program is the Akron After School Tutoring and Enrichment Program.

The 21st Century Community Learning Centers (21CCLC) program is Title IV-Part B of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. The reauthorized version of this bill, also known as "No Child Left Behind", turned over administration of this program to state departments of education. The 21CCLC grant is a competitive grant that allows public schools, private schools, and community-based organizations, including faith-based organizations, to apply for funding to operate high-quality academic support, recreation, and youth development programs commencing at the end of the regular school day.

Check out Akron City School's After School Program

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