Weekly Media Roundup: November 4, 2026

Celebrating Five Years, DJHCC Eyes Continued Growth, Chinook Observer (Washington)

The Dylan Jude Harrell Community Center (DJHCC) in Ilwaco, Washington, is celebrating its fifth anniversary after growing from a small program serving just 22 students in 2021 into a year-round organization offering preschool, afterschool programs and summer activities to hundreds of students. “When you think about the amount of funding that’s come in, the depth and breadth of the programming, the number of community members we serve, and the type of children we can support in terms of volume and age and diversity, that’s pretty incredible in five years,” Lauri Vela, DJHCC board member, told the Chinook Observer. Program leaders appreciate seeing some of DJHCC’s first students who are now high schoolers return to help out and support the program.

Pryor’s Free After-School Program Gives Students New Experiences, Connections, Fox 23 (Oklahoma)

For the past ten years, Pryor Public Schools’ free afterschool program, Tiger Pride, has provided Pryor, Oklahoma students in third through eighth grade with unique and engaging experiences, from horseback riding and fishing to art classes and drones. With free transportation provided by the district, the program builds students’ confidence while fostering friendships with students from other schools. Rebecca Cowan, an elementary school teacher and Tiger Pride staff member, emphasized the importance of having supportive adults in students’ lives, telling Fox 23 it matters that youth “just have another adult in their corner, one that’s responsible and that loves them and that just is someone to cheer them on in life.”

It’s Time to Build Toward Universal Afterschool Access in Michigan, Bridge Michigan (Michigan)

In a recent guest column for Bridge Michigan, Charles Stewart Mott Foundation President and CEO Ridgway White urges lawmakers to expand funding for afterschool, highlighting broad support for the issue across political lines. White celebrates Michigan’s $135 million in state funding for afterschool but notes more is needed, as more than 800,000 Michigan students cannot access the afterschool programs their parents want for them. “Strong public support for afterschool reflects what we’ve observed over decades: Young people benefit from having places to go, people who know them and opportunities to learn and grow. Families benefit from the peace of mind that comes with knowing their children are safe and engaged. Whole communities benefit when young people find positive pathways and parents can focus on providing for their families,” White writes.

Beeville Boys & Girls Club Seeks to Expand After-School Programs with Coastal Bend Day of Giving, KIII-TV (Texas)

Jessica Smith first joined the Boys & Girls Club of Beeville’s afterschool program in Corpus Christi, Texas at age 10. Today, she helps lead fundraising efforts for the program as vice president of the Club’s board of directors. This year, as part of the Coastal Bend Community Foundation’s Day of Giving, the Club is hoping to raise funds to expand enrichment offerings for the more than 400 students who attend each day. “We'd love to have more technology, more things for kiddos to do, keep their bodies moving. That's the point of a Boys & Girls Club. Mind, body, soul, wholeheartedly working together,” Smith told KIII-TV.