Top 10 highlights from Lights On Afterschool 2024

Yesterday, the 25th annual Lights On Afterschool was celebrated by afterschool programs and supporters nationwide. From Alaska to Florida, afterschool programs were hosting student art displays, STEM festivals, traditional cooking classes, scavenger hunts, student officer elections, and much more.

Here’s our best effort to share a snapshot of the day – our top 10 highlights from Lights On Afterschool 2024!

1. Superstar Usher joined the party as our honorary chair for Lights On Afterschool!
    

2. Sophia and her sister pose in their sweatshirts

   Lights On Afterschool poster artists Sophia and Elizabeth, from RAD ART at Houston Healthy Hip-Hop, celebrated with custom sweatshirts featuring their design! Sophia and Elizabeth’s drawing, selected via public voting on social media, was featured on 60,000 posters that decorated the walls of schools, community centers, libraries, and gathering places from coast to coast.
    
3. As one of the 1 million Americans celebrating, President Biden sent a message honoring afterschool programs and the important role they play in the lives of kids and families! “As you gather for this wonderful occasion, I hope you take pride in all you’ve done to advance the welfare of our children and youth. It is because of leaders like you that I’ve never been more optimistic about the future of our country.”
    
4. Thanks to Clear Channel Outdoor, messages of support for afterschool were shown on more than 2,000 billboards across the nation! A special animation ran in New York City’s Times Square.
    
5. More positive political news came from all over: 35 governors declared Lights On Afterschool day in their states. State and local leaders joined events all across the country. And, the U.S. Senate unanimously passed Resolution 880, resolving that the Senate supports Lights On Afterschool! The bipartisan Resolution was led by Sens. Smith (D-Minn.) and Collins (R-Maine) with cosponsors: Sens. Braun (R-Ind.), Warren (D-Mass.), Kaine (D-Va.) and Casey (D-Penn.).
    
6. We’re still tallying up the final results, but it looks like more than 8,000 events were hosted in celebration of afterschool this year. Share photos from your event with us at info@afterschoolalliance.org!
    
7. Once again, social media kept the party going well into the night — we saw nearly 500 Lightbulb Challenge poses posted online! If you missed your shot, there’s still time to participate over the weekend.
    
8. Landmarks lit up for afterschool, including the Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge in D.C., New York’s Niagara Falls, Boston’s South Station, state capitols in Delaware and Pennsylvania, Boggus Stadium in Harlingen, Texas, and the Gateway to Science building in Bismarck, North Dakota, along with many more.
    
9. NASA invited afterschool youth to a special Lights On Afterschool Q&A with Charlie Blackwell-Thompson, NASA’s first female launch director. NASA hosted a live Q&A with Charlie to answer student questions about space and STEM career opportunities.
    
10. One amazing celebration literally broke records: Buzz Henderson Learning Academy at Jewel City Church in West Virginia broke the world record for a single person wearing the most lanyards at once! Smashing the last record of 509, Michelle Fraise, director of the program, wore 547 lanyards to bring attention to afterschool.

Thank you for a stellar Lights On Afterschool 2024! We’ll have additional blogs about the big day coming out in the next few weeks, so stay tuned for more follow-ups.