Weekly Media Roundup: February 24, 2021

Community Stepped Up When the Going Got Tough, Sandusky Register (Ohio)

When the pandemic hit, the Boys & Girls Club of Northeast Ohio immediately got to work to ensure students’ academic, physical and emotional needs were met. The Club partnered with Sandusky City Schools to distribute more than 14,0000 meals over the course of 10 weeks. Donations from individuals and foundations also enabled the Club to open 15 socially distanced remote learning centers with laptops, high-speed Internet and additional staff support. “This might read like a love letter to our community. I am good with that,” Director Jerome Johnson wrote in a recent guest column for the Sandusky Register. “I cannot thank this community enough for all of you have done for our kids and families during the pandemic.”

Summer Adventures to Return, The Iola Register (Kansas)

For the first time in four years, the SAFE BASE afterschool program in Iola, Kansas will offer a four-week summer learning program for about 135 students, thanks to funding from Unified School District 257. The free program, which will include meals and transportation, will keep students in kindergarten through eighth grade learning during the summer and help them explore new interests through educational activities and field trips. Program Director Angela Henry, an Afterschool Ambassador for the Afterschool Alliance, said the summer program will give students opportunities for adventures they might not otherwise have. A survey of current SAFE BASE families found a large majority wanted the summer program to return, the Iola Register reports.

Pence Students Continue Learning After School, Southeast Iowa Union (Iowa)

In the 21st Century Community Learning Center afterschool program at Pence Elementary School in Fairfield, Iowa, students get academic support, do hands-on activities such as weaving paper baskets, designing marble roller coasters, and carving pumpkins, and take field trips to learn more about their community. During the pandemic, the program has adapted to offer virtual programming and at-home activity kits. With the advent of federal funding, the school is able to offer programming that involves STEM education (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) and experiences they wouldn’t have at home, the Southeast Iowa Union reports.

Colorado Educators, Community Leaders Uniting for “Summer Recovery Coalition” to Address Learning Loss, KOAA-TV (Colorado)

In response to the academic setbacks from the pandemic, a diverse group of community leaders and educators in Colorado have joined together to form the Summer Recovery Coalition. The Coalition is advocating for government funding of summer enrichment programs that would be supported by school districts, education centers and afterschool programs. “Boys and Girls Clubs and afterschool agencies have been doing much of this work so coming together just makes sense… leveraging on all of the resources that we have in our communities to help lift our kids up and provide opportunities,” Becky Medina, vice president of operations at Boys and Girls Club of Pueblo County, told KOAA-TVV.