Weekly Media Roundup: November 7, 2018

Young Audiences Arts After School Program Brings Arts Integration to Bonner Elementary School, Tyler Morning Telegraph (Texas)

In Tyler, Texas, more than 50 elementary students benefit from a new afterschool program that exposes children to arts instruction they may not get during school hours. In addition to homework help and snacks, Arts After School provides dance workshops, movement classes, drama instruction and other art-centered projects. The free program utilizes guest artists as well as arts majors from the University of Texas at Tyler and Tyler Junior College. “We know the arts can make a difference in a child’s life,” Executive Director Amy Baskin told the Tyler Morning Telegraph. “All of the research tells us students from low socio-economic statuses that have high exposure to the arts are five times less likely to drop out and twice as likely to go to college.”

‘Transformative’: A Leading Jacksonville Afterschool Program Turns 20, The Florida Times-Union (Florida)

At the Communities In Schools afterschool program in Jacksonville, Florida, children play sports, work on robotics, learn orchestral music, study moon soil and more. The program is active in 22 schools and provides students in kindergarten through eighth grade with mentors, tutoring and a safe community. “Students are learning and developing confidence and goals for their future. They feel loved and welcomed in the schools,” National Communities In Schools Development Director Elizabeth Mejia told the Florida Times-Union. “Parents appreciate the extra support they receive.”

Champion for Brooklyn’s Homeless High School Kids Devotes His Life to Helping Them Succeed, New York Daily News (New York)

Since 2007, two afterschool programs created by a long-time New York educator have built pathways to college and careers for more than 1,000 homeless students in Brooklyn. Safe in My Brother’s Arms and All Sisters Evolving Together provide tutoring, SAT preparation, and college tours to eighth- to twelfth- grade students in temporary housing. Students also take part in activities including fencing and culinary arts. “For these young people, their challenges make them great,” founder Wayne Harris told New York Daily News. “No matter what shelter they live in, they get up every morning and go to school. Instead of seeing that as a deficit, we’ve created a place where we see it as a strength.”

Orlando After-School Program Sparks Teens' Interest in Learning Through Games, WKMG Click Orlando (Florida)

The Hero Spark program in Orlando, Florida grows teens’ academic and socio-emotional skills using tabletop role-playing games. Phil Zoshak created the afterschool program because of the impact fantasy games such as Dungeons and Dragons had on his academic confidence when he was in high school. By building characters and working together to solve problems, 11- to 17-year-old Hero Spark participants learn collaboration, critical thinking and creative writing. The program also offers homework help and tutoring. Twelve-year-old Zoe Hart told Click Orlando, "It made me a lot less shy. Now I'm more confident talking to people. You're kind of communicating how this person acts and it makes you more confident on how you act.”