Time to celebrate! Today is Lights On Afterschool!

Today’s the 23rd annual Lights On Afterschool! Students are speaking with NASA astronauts and STEM Energy Superheroes, building wind turbines, running speak-out stations, putting on performances, and so much more at more than 5,000 events nationwide. In all, more than 1 million people will gather to celebrate afterschool programs and all they do to keep kids safe, inspire them to learn, and help working families. This year is especially poignant as we reflect on the important ways programs support students’ learning and well-being, and give young people opportunities to connect, explore, lead, and dream. Yet, for every child in a program, 4 more are waiting to get in. 

More than 5,000 programs are opening their doors to the community to share the power of afterschool experiences. A few highlights (for more, search local events or see a compilation of sample events around the country): 

• Professional soccer player Amobi Okugo, rap talent Paris Nights, Destiny Arts African Dance Group, cheer squads, and step troupes kicked off Lights On Afterschool with Bay Area Resources’ afterschool program at Martin Luther King Junior Elementary School in Oakland, CA on October 13. Our Afterschool Alliance team, the superintendent, school and state education leaders, and afterschool partners and leaders were on hand to celebrate with hundreds of youth and families. 

• NASA teamed up with Million Girls Moonshot and the Alliance to host a series of special in-person events at NASA centers around the country, plus a national virtual activity, featuring actor Keke Palmer of Disney’s Lightyear and International Space Station astronaut Jessica Watkins. Hundreds of programs are tuning into the virtual activity during their Lights On Afterschool events. Million Girls Moonshot Flight Crew youth are moderating events. (Programs can stream the virtual activity anytime at the NASA STEM Youtube channel.)

• LEAP afterschool program, which created the winning artwork for the 2022 Lights On poster, put on a theatrical performance based on the artwork concept, a mural designed and painted by students on the wall of their school building, PS 100x in Bronx, NY.

• Energy Superheroes – women leaders in STEM – are visiting elementary and middle school youth at programs in four states to talk about their careers and build wind turbines. These Superheroes are profiled in the Everyday STEM Hero book series. The book series authors and energy company sponsors have donated hundreds of copies of the books to afterschool programs around the country. 

• Teens are leading Lights On. At VOX ATL in Atlanta, GA, teens are putting on an event to share the findings of their 2022 teen survey, why programs matter, and leading speak-out stations. In Rhode Island, Youth in Action will celebrate 25 years of empowering young change makers. At the youth-led program, students can earn credit for their afterschool learning. At Abundance Farms in Northampton, MA, teens are sharing what they’re learning as stewards of the farm, how their social identities relate and intersect with our food system and community, and practices in reflection, awareness, and growth.

• Mizzen, the free app loaded with lessons for afterschool providers, curated a set of engaging activities for afterschool programs to consider running during their Lights On Afterschool celebrations, from mindfulness to hands-on STEM to getting active.

Afterschool billboards with the tag, Freedom to Explore, are running all month in 25 markets nationwide thanks to Clear Channel Outdoor, in addition to a special run on jumbo screens in Times Square on Lights On Afterschool day.

U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona will share a message during Think Together’s virtual Lights On Afterschool celebration.

From Alabama to Alaska, landmarks are lighting up in honor of afterschool – including NYC’s iconic Empire State Building - and governors and mayors across the nation will issue proclamations in support of afterschool. Lightings of memorials, brides, skyscrapers, stadiums include the Superdome in New Orleans, LA; the Tampa Bay Rays’ Tropicana Field in Florida; Frederick Douglass Bridge in Washington, DC; the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation in Flint, MI; the Salt Palace in Utah; and Denali State Bank in Fairbanks, AK, where for the first time a giant Lights On logo will be projected onto the building. 

All across social media, #LightsOnAfterschool afterschool supporters and friends are posting photos on social media as part of the Lightbulb Challenge.

We hope you are celebrating, too! Be sure to post your #LightsOnAfterschool message, and save the date for the 24th Lights On Afterschool on October 26, 2023!