Weekly Media Roundup, July 26, 2023

SciTech2U: Showing Kids All That Careers in STEM Have to Offer, WUSA (Washington, D.C.)

At SciTech2u’s summer camp in Washington, D.C., students of color use flight simulators to practice flying while learning about aeronautics and future career opportunities. Program founder Zainab Abbas, an Afterschool Alliance Afterschool Ambassador and former biotechnology college instructor, created the summer program 12 years ago to increase awareness of STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) careers in underserved communities. “I decided to try to capture younger students, K-12, and expose them to fields in STEM like biotechnology, aeronautics, 3D printing, engineering,” Abbas told WUSA. “We found that in our program, 64 percent of our students either stay or continue on to pursue careers in STEM.”

Swain teens push for youth center, Smoky Mountain News (North Carolina)

In North Carolina, student council members at Swain County High School are raising their voices in support of a new youth center that would offer afterschool programs to area students. “I feel like it’d be a safe area for kids to go wait for their parents, because not all parents get off of work at the same time as school ends,” 15-year-old council member Amber Hinnant told the Smoky Mountain News. “It would be a positive atmosphere for teens and others to socialize with their peers.” The student council members are inviting residents to complete a survey gauging the community’s interest in a center and plan to present their findings at an upcoming county commissioners’ meeting.

San Diego Unified Has Slashed Its After-School Care Waitlist, Voice of San Diego (California)

Last November, more than 4,600 families were on the waitlist for afterschool programs at the San Diego Unified School District in California. Now, thanks to an increase in state funding and new partnerships with community organizations such as the YMCA, that number is down to 1,045. “One of the things that I’m really curious about is if we can sustain this and provide that consistent before and after-school care for kids, what difference does it make for academic and social emotional outcomes?” school board member Shana Hazan told Voice of San Diego. School officials say getting off the waitlist makes a big difference for students and their families, including Jared Goossens, a single dad who was able take a job as a mailman when his son got a spot in an afterschool program.

Boston Public Schools Expands Summer School Programming with More 'Enrichment' Activities, WBUR (Massachusetts)

More students in Boston are participating in summer learning programs through Boston Public Schools than ever before, according to school officials. The district’s “5th Quarter” initiative includes 130 free summer learning programs at 63 school buildings in partnership with 67 community organizations, serving more than 15,000 students. Activities include sailing, tennis, and filmmaking alongside classroom instruction. Officials have also worked to make the programs more accessible to students with disabilities. "We are trying to meet young people where they are and where their interests are," Wil Cardwell, summer learning program director at Boston After School & Beyond, told WBUR. "A lot of these students are here because they need the pro social supports and they need access to other peers and caring adults."