Weekly Media Roundup: July 10, 2024

Education Matters: Central Valley Schools Are Expanding Students’ Learning Experiences,Your Central Valley (California)

Thanks to a series of partnerships with county offices and Community Youth Ministries, students in the Selma Unified and Kings Canyon Unified School Districts in Fresno, California have access to robust afterschool programs. For example, at Jefferson Elementary, students learn the basics of boxing while also getting support in reading and math. The programs continue throughout the summer. “Without our afterschool program [and] our ELP program, our students may go home to an empty house, they may not have the support there they need with their homework, or they just don’t have anything to do,” Polly Rosalez, learning director at Jefferson Elementary, told Your Central Valley.

Troy's Ark Child Care Program to Close After State Funding Loss, The Times Union (New York)

After providing a safe space for students to go to after school for the past 45 years in Troy, New York, the Ark is closing its doors due to funding shortfalls. The Ark relied on state government grants to support its afterschool and summer programs for families in the Troy Housing Authority. Many of the Ark employees live in the public housing neighborhood as well. “Our founders lived in public housing. There’s not many executive directors that can say that,” Penny Holmes, executive director and former participant of the Ark, told the Times Union. “I’m what that grant was about. This is what we want our children to do. We want them to become productive citizens.”

Organization Works to Combat Summer Learning Loss for Local Elementary Students, News 10 (New York)

At nine sites across Rochester, New York, about 200 elementary schoolers are spending their summer conducting science experiments, learning to swim, going on nature walks, and more at the Greater Rochester Summer Learning Association’s (GRSLA) six-week LEAP program. Last year, nearly 90 percent of parents reported in a LEAP survey that the program helped them keep their job over the summer. But program leaders say more funding is needed to meet the demand. “Kids are there, the parents are there, the centers are there, the expertise is there, the facilities are there, the equipment’s there. It’s really just finding the money to keep the teachers on and provide what we provide, the pieces that we provide as a support,” GRSLA President and CEO Luis A. Perez told News 10.

West Louisville Foundation Enriches Its Participants in More Ways Than One, Spectrum News 1 (Kentucky)

At the DELTA (Developing Educated Leaders Through Athletics) Foundation in West Louisville, Kentucky, students are playing multiple sports, exploring the arts, learning leadership skills, receiving mental health counseling, and much more throughout the summer and school year. “Any parent that has a kid in basketball, volleyball, knows how expensive they can be,” DELTA Founder Wes Hinton told Spectrum News 1. “We offer all that for free, but the academics are non-negotiable ... we’re one of the only independent nonprofits in Louisville that offers 100 percent free summer camps, afterschool programming and tutoring.” Hinton hopes to expand the program throughout Louisville.