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Weekly Media Roundup: December 7, 2022

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Weekly Media Roundup: December 7, 2022

Season for Sharing: From Homework to Job Skills, Saint Florian Center Helps At-Risk Kids, Indianapolis Star (Indiana)

Motivated by the lack of safe, affordable recreation options for children, Indianapolis Fire Department Battalion Chief Anthony Williamson founded the Saint Florian Center nearly 30 years ago in Indianapolis, Indiana. “We would see kids that were just in despair. They were despondent. You could see the looks on their faces, like they didn't have hope. … And so we were like, ‘We’ve got to be able to do more,’” Williamson told the Indianapolis Star. The center, named after the patron saint of firefighters, hosts summer camps and afterschool programs that teach students leadership and survival skills as well as provide fitness activities, educational support, field trips and community service opportunities.

Minneapolis Schools, Police Join Forces to Relaunch After-School Program, CBS News Minnesota (Minnesota)

After a three-year hiatus, the Minneapolis Police Activities League (PAL) is partnering with four local elementary schools to provide afterschool programs that nurture relationships and build community involvement. The Minneapolis PAL program closed in 2019 due to lack of funds and staffing but a group of police officers and school principals hope to restore the program. “It does take a village, and it takes every one of us. The schools, the police department, the various partnerships – all very important to build our community strong,” Laura Cavender, associate superintendent of Minneapolis Public Schools, told CBS News Minnesota. Four schools will initially host the pilot program with the goal of expanding to additional schools.

Finish Strong Supports Poughkeepsie Youth with Programs, Holiday Helping Hand Gift Cards, Poughkeepsie Journal (New York)

At the Finish Strong wellness center afterschool program in Poughkeepsie, New York, students access mental health services and try new activities such as jiu-jitsu, filmmaking, photography, and gaming. The free trauma-informed program is designed to provide a safe space for students to connect with caring adults and discover their passions. “The reality is that some of my kids are growing up to some hardships, and so Finish Strong is looked at as like a second home,” Founder Dennis Woodbine told the Poughkeepsie Journal. “A place where they could come and get the support that they need.” Thanks to a donation from Holiday Helping Hand, a partnership between the Poughkeepsie Journal and the United Way of the Dutchess-Orange Region, 20 Finish Strong students received Barnes & Noble gift cards for the holidays.

How This Afterschool Program is Helping Students in Arkansas, THV 11 (Arkansas)

The eStem Charter School in Little Rock, Arkansas created the IGNITE afterschool program to help students grow both academically and emotionally. In addition to homework help from teachers and a daily snack, the program offers a wide range of enrichment classes, including marketing, mindful movement, crochet, robotics, and more. “It is immensely important that kids have a place to go and something to do after school,” Lori Smith, executive director of elementary schools at eStem, told THV 11.  “We’re hoping that we can pique their interest and get them learning in something that will be a lifelong activity for them to do.”

Weekly Media Roundup: May 10, 2023

D.O.V.E.S Afterschool Program Builds Self-Esteem, Confidence in Local Elementary Students, WMDT (Maryland) At the D.O.V.E.S. (Daughters of Value, Excellence and Success) afterschool program in Salisbury, Maryland, young girls are empowered to be themselves and support one another and others in...

BY: Magen Eissenstat      05/10/23

Weekly Media Roundup: May 3, 2023

Rally at the Capitol for Funding Afterschool Programs, Fox 43 (Pennsylvania) Afterschool providers, parents and advocates gathered on the steps of the Pennsylvania Capitol in Harrisburg today to urge the state legislature to pass House Bill 795, which would provide state funding for afterschool...

BY: Magen Eissenstat      05/03/23

Weekly Media Roundup: April 26, 2023

Local After School Care Program Aims to Help Kids Regain Knowledge Lost Due to COVID, KFDA (Texas) At the Bear Paws afterschool program in Amarillo, Texas, middle school students are participating in engaging activities to tackle learning loss from the pandemic. “We’re trying to...

BY: Magen Eissenstat      04/26/23

Weekly Media Roundup: April 19, 2023

After-School Program and City Officials Celebrate Arbor Day, Cumberland Times-News (Maryland) In honor of Arbor Day, elementary school students from Allegany County Public Schools’ afterschool programs participated in a tree planting ceremony at Gene Mason Sports Complex in Cumberland,...

BY: Magen Eissenstat      04/19/23

Weekly Media Roundup: April 12, 2023

Schools Used ESSER Funds for After-School Programs. What Happens When the Money Runs Out? Education Week With the assistance of ESSER (Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief) funding, afterschool and summer programs throughout the country were able to expand and serve a greater number...

BY: Magen Eissenstat      04/12/23

Weekly Media Roundup: April 5, 2023

After-School Programs Financed with Pandemic Funds Making a Difference in Chester County, Daily Local News (Pennsylvania) Funding from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) is helping Mighty Writers and Coatesville Kids to College, two afterschool programs in Chester County, Pennsylvania, expand...

BY: Magen Eissenstat      04/05/23

Weekly Media Roundup: March 29, 2023

Commentary: SC Afterschool Programs Can Help Close Gender Gap in STEM Industries, The Post and Courier (South Carolina) In a recent guest column for the Post and Courier, South Carolina Afterschool Alliance President and CEO Zelda Waymer notes the overlap between Women’s History Month and...

BY: Magen Eissenstat      03/29/23

Weekly Media Roundup: March 22, 2023

Non-Profit Helps Lynn Students Prepare for Careers in Human Services, CBS Boston (Massachusetts) At the Pathways to Opportunities afterschool program at Lynn Classical High School in Massachusetts, high schoolers explore careers in human services with help from mentors from the Northeast Arc, a...

BY: Magen Eissenstat      03/22/23

Weekly Media Roundup: March 15, 2023

Youth Invited to Reimagine Sioux Falls with City Build 2040 Event, Dakota News Now (South Dakota) Elementary schoolers attending the South Dakota Afterschool Network’s two-day City Build 2040 event in Sioux Falls will work with local experts to create models that showcase their vision for...

BY: Magen Eissenstat      03/15/23

Weekly Media Roundup: March 8, 2023

STUDENT VOICES: We Need More Women in STEM Fields, and We Have Ideas for Making that Happen, The Hechinger Report In a guest column for the Hechinger Report, high schoolers Henrietta Rasmusson and Emerald Yankey list three priorities for increasing women’s participation in science,...

BY: Magen Eissenstat      03/08/23