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In the summer after fifth grade, "Renell" was already taking an oversized role raising her little sister, while their foster mother was working nights at a local hospital to put food on the table. Accustomed to being in charge at home, "Renell" didn't take well to authority, and argued with umpires on the softball field, made incendiary remarks during reading sessions, and picked fights with her teammates. After arranging to fight one of her teammates for striking out during a softball game, she was dismissed from Harlem RBI's summer program - an outcome even she agreed was fair under the circumstances.
That autumn, when Harlem RBI staff began recruiting students for the afterschool program, "Renell" got a second chance and took advantage of it. Director of Organizational Excellence Megan Demarkis reports that "Renell" became a team leader, cheering on teammates, explaining program expectations to new participants, and putting a quick stop to teasing and trash-talking by inexperienced teammates. "Look," "Renell" said, "we don't do that here. They're serious. Just ask me." For the rest of the year and into the summer program, "Renell" excelled, compiling an outstanding attendance record and showing all the signs of a young girl who had found her way.
"Renell"'s story is similar to those of many of the youth with special needs who come to Harlem RBI. "We don't usually know much about our youth at enrollment," Demarkis says. "If we're lucky, we might find out more from the teachers who work with our youth during the regular school day. Generally, we think we're prepared to address all needs by using solid teaching and learning strategies that engage everyone."
Harlem RBI is a unique baseball/softball-oriented program, with a focus on physical health, active citizenship, academics, work-readiness, teamwork, and more. "We want all our graduates to reach those objectives, and all our programs, from third through 12th grade, are designed with these objectives as guideposts. Implementation is different at the various age levels, of course, but the objectives are constant."
At the elementary levels, a typical day for a student involves activities ranging from improving reading skills, to sports and teamwork, to conflict-resolution and problem-solving - all designed to be "fun and different from your traditional school activity," says Demarkis. As children get older, their programs reflect their growing capacity - and demand - to choose their activities. Working as a team, seventh- and eighth-grade students design a service project, for example.
Baseball and softball are a constant throughout and, from it, the program draws lessons in cooperation, teamwork, leadership, fitness and more. In addition, participation on the program's teams can be a powerful motivator for participation, as it was for "Renell."
"We partner with Ramapo for Children to develop a training program that helps all levels of staff use a series of interventions that call youths' attention to behaviors, and give them good choices for changing it. The techniques work with any child," she says, "but we work to apply them consciously and consistently, particularly for our youth with special needs."
With children with cognitive or academic delays, Demarkis says, "we try to give as much support as we can. We'll set them up with reading buddies, for example, so they can be full participants. And we've got a very good ratio of adults to children, which helps a lot."
The program's heavy reliance on sports and physical activity is helpful, as well, she points out. "Also, the youth aren't stigmatized from the jump, as they sometimes are in the regular school day. We work to give them a sense of belonging, and help them explore their talents. We do that for all our youth, but for special needs youth, it's a real opportunity to be successful."
For more information on Harlem RBI, click here. To view the new Afterschool Alliance Issue Brief, "Afterschool and Students with Special Needs," click here.
This story originally appeared in the Afterschool Advocate (Vol. 9, Issue 12).
Click here to read the rest of this issue.
