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Weekly Media Roundup, April 8, 2020

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Weekly Media Roundup, April 8, 2020

With Coronavirus Shuttering Its After-School Program, South Reading Youth Initiative Sends Help to Students' Homes, Reading Eagle (Pennsylvania)

At the South Reading Youth Initiative afterschool program in Reading, Pennsylvania, about 100 first and second grade school students receive academic support and mentorship from college students in their community. To continue to support students’ academic growth while schools and programs are closed due to coronavirus, the program gave each student a 70-page booklet that included crafts, games, educational activities and more, along with school supplies. They were so popular that additional packets are being distributed to students outside the program. “Now is the time we have to circle the wagons,” Rudy Ruth, executive director of the Holleran Center, which created the program, told the Reading Eagle. “We have to all look out for each other.”

Amid Coronavirus Crisis, Few Are More Essential than the Child-Care Teams at Long Beach’s Boys & Girls Clubs, YMCA, Press Telegram (California)

Children of essential workers are engaging in schoolwork, art projects, games, educational programming, fitness activities and more all day at the YMCA of Greater Long Beach in California and the Boys & Girls Clubs of Long Beach while schools are closed due to coronavirus. The afterschool staff are providing safe, educational spaces while employing social distancing measures, such as keeping students in small groups and six feet apart, while their parents are at work. “When the schools closed, I got worried about child care,” Celinda Cerda, a patient services technician, told the Press Telegram. “Now, when I leave my boys at the Boys & Girls Club, I leave with peace of mind, knowing my boys are safe and happy.”

Boys and Girls Clubs Still Serving At-Risk Youths During Stay-At-Home Order, Daily Herald (Illinois)

While schools and programs are closed due to coronavirus, Boys and Girls Clubs in the Chicago area are hosting daily social-emotional check-ins using the video conference platform Zoom. At these virtual gatherings, students discuss how they are feeling, share information about academic or art projects they’ve completed, and connect with friends and Club mentors. The Clubs are also working to meet the immediate needs of students and their families through activity kits, meal deliveries and more. “One of the biggest unique challenges is this sense of separation the kids are experiencing from the norm,” Drew Glassford, CEO for the Dundee Township chapter, told the Daily Herald. “The virtual program allows that emotional connection to continue when kids are feeling the most stressed they've felt in a long time.”

With Doors Closed, Boys & Girls Clubs Still Reaching Out, San Antonio Express-News (Texas)

Each weekday, the San Antonio Boys & Girls Clubs in Texas are providing a daily virtual ‘Power Hour’ to help students with their school assignments. The club is engaging in a variety of activities to support families while schools are closed due to coronavirus, including distributing healthy snacks, toilet paper, games and projects, streaming fitness-oriented YouTube videos, and more. “We asked, ‘What do you need most?’” Renee Garvens, chief development officer for the San Antonio Boys & Girls Clubs, told the San Antonio Express-News. “We knew that families were being overwhelmed by the virtual school experience.”

Weekly Media Roundup: March 20, 2024

Matthew McConaughey and ASU Are Helping an Arizona School District. Here's How, Arizona Republic (Arizona) Matthew McConaughey and Arizona State University (ASU) have teamed up to help a Phoenix-area school district apply for federal afterschool funding included in the Bipartisan Safer...

BY: Magen Eissenstat      03/20/24

Weekly Media Roundup: March 13, 2024

English Learners Stopped Coming to Class During the Pandemic. One Group is Tackling the Problem By Helping Their Parents, Hechinger Report In North Carolina, nearly one third of English language learning students were chronically absent last year, a rate significantly higher than the...

BY: Magen Eissenstat      03/13/24

Weekly Media Roundup: March 6, 2024

Charlotte Afterschool Program Aims to Break Cycle of Youth Crime and Violence, WBTV (North Carolina) In response to the 33 percent rise in juvenile gun violence in Charlotte, North Carolina, county leaders presented The Way Forward plan to city council members this week. The plan includes...

BY: Magen Eissenstat      03/06/24

Weekly Media Roundup: February 28, 2024

Program Designed to Boost Reading Rates in NW Tallahassee is Reaching More Students, WTXL (Florida) At Springwood Elementary School’s afterschool program in Tallahassee, Florida, students are paired with volunteers from United Way’s ReadingPals program, working together to improve...

BY: Magen Eissenstat      02/28/24

Weekly Media Roundup: February 21, 2024

Missoula After-School Program for BIPOC Youth Creating Next Generation of Leaders, KTVQ-TV (Montana) At the Association for BIPOC (Black Indigenous People of Color) Youth afterschool program in Missoula, Montana, students of color build community, take part in mindfulness activities, and develop...

BY: Magen Eissenstat      02/21/24

Weekly Media Roundup: February 14, 2024

Viewpoint: Invest in Out-of-School Programs to Help Solve State’s Educational Challenges, South Bend Tribune (Indiana) Indiana lawmakers are considering continuing the state’s pandemic-era investments in out-of-school time learning, including afterschool and summer learning programs....

BY: Magen Eissenstat      02/14/24

Weekly Media Roundup: February 7, 2024

Rangers Star Welcomes Kids to the Ice in After School Program, NBC4 (New York) With help from a donation from the Garden of Dreams Foundation, 50 students in the WHEDco (Women’s Housing and Economic Development Corporation) afterschool program in the South Bronx are lacing up skates and...

BY: Magen Eissenstat      02/07/24

Weekly Media Roundup: January 31, 2024

Advocates of Afterschool Opportunities Rally in Albany for $119M Funding Boost, Spectrum News 1 (New York) On Tuesday, afterschool leaders, students, and lawmakers gathered in Albany, New York to press for an additional $119 million in state funding to ensure universal access to afterschool. At...

BY: Magen Eissenstat      01/31/24

Weekly Media Roundup: January 24, 2024

'Articulate Their Pain': Preventing Teen Suicide Through the Power of Music, Spectrum News 1 (North Carolina) DDAAT-App, a mental health nonprofit with an afterschool program in Charlotte, North Carolina, is partnering with The Bridge, a music studio, to give students access to recording...

BY: Magen Eissenstat      01/24/24

Weekly Media Roundup: January 17, 2024

Bessie Coleman After School Aviation Program to be Tested in Oklahoma, General Aviation News (Oklahoma) Sixth and 7th graders in Tulsa, Oklahoma are exploring careers in aerospace and aeronautics by building planes, flying drones, and participating in other hands-on projects thanks to a...

BY: Magen Eissenstat      01/17/24