Weekly Media Roundup: October 30, 2024

A Metro-East Nonprofit Increases After-School Programs with Help from Illinois Grant, Belleville News-Democrat (Illinois)

Thanks to an Illinois Restore, Reinvest and Renew grant, the East St. Louis Youth Development Alliance will expand its afterschool programs to serve a greater number of students and offer additional services, including mental health support and career development programs. “It is very important that our kids have programming after school that offers them the opportunity to be whatever it is that they want to be,” Illinois State Senator Christopher Belt told the Belleville News-Democrat. The afterschool programs currently serve nearly 1,000 students in underserved areas in East St. Louis, providing academic assistance, engaging STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts and math) programs, field trips, and mentoring opportunities.

Boys & Girls Clubs, Greece Arcadia Partnering for New After-School Program After State Grant, WROC (New York)

Greece Arcadia Middle School Principal Brian Lumb recognized the lack of afterschool programs for his students and partnered with the Boys and Girls Clubs of Rochester to apply for state funding for afterschool programs. “Our students didn’t have many positive activities to participate in outside of school in the evening time, and that led to some of the issues that were happening, spilling into school,” Lamb told WROC. Just last week, they were awarded state funding for free afterschool and summer programs in the area.

Boys & Girls Club Hosts Heartwarming Community Dinner for All of Carter County, Elizabethton Star (Tennessee)

In the wake of Hurricane Helene, the Boys & Girls Club of Elizabethton/Carter County in Tennessee is serving as a remote learning site for students, offering free meals to-go for families, and providing free Wi-Fi for anyone who needs it. Last week, the Club invited the entire community for a shared meal at its site to provide comfort during a difficult time.  “Offering a meal in the aftermath of a disaster can bring the community together, providing a sense of normalcy and solidarity. Sharing a meal offers emotional comfort and a break from the stress of recovery efforts,” Charlene Ray, Director of Resource and Development, told the Elizabethton Star.  Students in the Club’s afterschool program also created banners for first responders and linemen expressing gratitude for their efforts.

They Were ‘At-Risk’ Girls. But She Saw Their Promise and Worked to Change Their Story, Miami Herald (Florida)

In Girl Power’s afterschool and summer programs in Miami, girls ages 11-17 explore careers in STEAM, sing in a choir, connect with mentors, and process traumatic experiences in a safe, supportive space. The program provides specialized offerings for girls who have been arrested and those who are vulnerable to trafficking. “I’m talking about the girls that we used to call ‘at risk’, and we want to change that, because these girls have a lot of promise. They’re so smart and they’re brilliant. And they’re resilient and persistent and funny and beautiful,” founder and CEO Thema Campbell told the Miami Herald. Girl Power, she said, is a “safe space for them to be able to find their voices and to learn to speak up and advocate for themselves.”