Weekly Media Roundup: June 27, 2024

The Surprising Reason Black Schools Face a ‘Fiscal Cliff’ This Fall, Word in Black

As federal COVID emergency funds expire this fall, Black students around the country are at risk of losing access to afterschool programs and other supports that students in better-funded school districts have long taken for granted. “These opportunities have been created through ESSER (Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Act) dollars,” Jen Rinehart, senior vice president of the Afterschool Alliance, tells Word in Black. “With the deadline for the spending coming up, we’re concerned that many of those young people will lose out on programs that they and their families have really begun to rely on.” A Center on Budget and Policy Priorities report warns that many school districts may now face a fiscal cliff that could result in painful cuts.

FBP Joins Summer Learning Fun with Careers for Kids Program, Chillicothe Gazette (Ohio)

In Chillicothe, Ohio, students are exploring STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art and math) careers through hands-on, engaging experiments and activities at the Careers for Kids summer program. Formerly the College for Kids program, the summer education program is a collaborative effort between Ross-Pike Educational Service District and Fluor-BWXT environmental remediation company. “We decided to move towards careers to expose students at a young age to all of the possibilities around them and ignite some interests,” Ross-Pike Educational Service District Special Education/Gifted Supervisor Tricia Crawford tells the Chillicothe Gazette. “If they experience fun activities that are career related, it might stick with them and help guide them as they get older and choose a pathway.”

Michigan Students Make History Representing Afterschool Programs at State Capitol, WZZM-13 (Grand Rapids, Michigan)

The eight members of Michigan's first-ever class of Youth After School Ambassadors, chosen by the Michigan Afterschool Partnership, visited with state lawmakers in Lansing for "Capitol Day" last month just as legislators were finalizing next year’s budget. The students, ages 13 – 17, were among some 250 people who shared the benefits offered by afterschool programs. Youth Ambassador Sean McDonald tells WZZM-13 that the New City Kids afterschool program “feels like second home. I was in the foster care system for almost all my life. So coming here… even when you're down at your lowest point, there's always something here that brings you up to a higher level."

Backpack League Combats Summer Slide With Fun and Learning, Spectrum News 1 (Louisville, Kentucky)

Some 6,500 Jefferson County Public School students are participating in the school district’s Summer Backpack League, to get ready for the school year this fall. The program gives incoming 1^st through 8^th graders exposure to obstacle course races, robotics, coding, and other STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics) and STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) activities. “Study after study indicates that engagement and learning activities during the summer months will prevent that summer slide and improve academic learning outcomes during the regular school year,” Chris Burba, the school district’s executive director for student programs and student learning, tells Spectrum News 1. “And that’s what we are here for.” The Summer Backpack League is a collaboration between the school district and Evolve 502, a nonprofit working to help students succeed.