Weekly Media Roundup: September 25, 2019

East LA Board Shop Combines Skateboarding, Education To Keep Kids Off The Streets, CBSN Los Angeles (California)

The Garage Board Shop, a skateboard retail store in Los Angeles, was originally a business opportunity for its owners. But soon, they converted it to a nonprofit that facilitates an afterschool program for the students who were hanging out there. At Skate-4-Education, students get free tutoring and homework help, after which they can practice skateboarding on a halfpipe. They also form relationships with mentors and use a computer room funded by the county. The program provides a safe, positive community for children in the neighborhood, many of whom have been affected by gang violence. “It’s meant a lot to me,” student Erik Ramirez told CBSN Los Angeles. “It taught me stuff I never thought I’d learn. I never thought I’d have this before. It’s like basically a new family.”

Kingsport YMCA Celebrates the Contribution of Immigrants, Kingsport Times-News (Tennessee)

Last week, the Greater Kingsport Family YMCA in Tennessee held events honoring immigrants at all 13 of its afterschool programs. Students’ family members visited programs to share information about their family’s history, music, and food, and students learned how to say ‘welcome’ in different languages. The YMCA also hosted an African Drum Circle. The events celebrated “Welcoming Week,” a nationwide event that aims to promote unity while lifting up immigrants’ contributions to their communities. “I’ve really started to realize the diversity we have among us, across many dimensions, and how important it is for the Y to be a safe place for all,” Vice President of Advancement Abigail Weaver told the Kingsport Times-News.

After-School Programs Rock at OCS, Voice of San Diego (California)

All students at the O’Farrell Charter School in San Diego can access a robust, free afterschool program when the final bell rings each day. At the Extended Day program, students in kindergarten through eighth grade conduct science experiments, garden, play sports, learn to cook healthy meals from various cultures and more. The high school DIVE program includes activities such as theater, animation, and surfing and snowboarding trips. Both programs include tutoring and dinner. “Things like trying a meal from a different culture, learning a new language, or dissecting a fish expand new horizons,” Extended Day Program Coordinator Alexa Reyes told the Voice of San Diego. “Without the program, many of our students may not have access to these activities.”

After-School Program Takes Shape, Wilson Times (North Carolina)

As its first strategic initiative, the Healthcare Foundation of Wilson, North Carolina is developing an afterschool program for middle schoolers in partnership with the Wilson Family YMCA. The free program will be available to all middle schoolers in the county and will include a science lab, makerspace, art room and kitchen. The foundation surveyed 1,700 middle schoolers last year about their needs to inform the design of the program. “This is a program that we really believe can make a difference for our community,” Denise O’Hara, the foundation’s executive director, told the Wilson Times. “Middle schoolers can make decisions that can change their lives.”