The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Folks hope to improve after school activities
The Nord Family Foundation convened several members of the Lorain County community to discuss the value of after-school activities for students and focus on improving their effectiveness.
The event called the The Lorain County After-school Investment took place May 21, at Lorain County Community College’s Spitzer Center.
It included 43 representatives from foundations, local school districts, local and regional nonprofit organizations, city government and Lorain Public Library System.
“After-school programs are a critical part of a student’s development,” said Anthony Richardson, program officer for The Nord Family Foundation. “We need to look at what students are choosing to do after school.
“Some programs are available, but there are others that aren’t there for students that would like to participate.”
Richardson said both the communities and schools need to be involved.
“Schools should have more options and should be a place students can stay and do something they enjoy after that final bell rings,” he said. “It isn’t solely a school problem; the community as a whole needs to look at what options students have and how they can be improved.
“It reflects on the community, not just the schools, and the community has a big role to play in creating a quality mixed bag of both school and community activities.”
Richardson said the goal of the event was to present data-driven representation of the current after-school climate.
“We didn’t want it to come across as our opinion,” he said. “We wanted to present the data to schools, nonprofits, foundations and city governments.
“The data allows them to see the areas that need to be addressed and how to create better opportunities for students. We identified 115 Out0f-School programs, but only 37.4 percent responded.
“There needs to be a change in the current landscape of after-school programs, and I hope today shines a light on that and gets the conversation started.”
Richardson said the goal is to realign the current after-school situation.
“We want to look at what programs are currently available and if they align with what students are learning during the day,” he said. “Don’t just have a program, but allow that program to build on what a student is learning during the day.
“This means more handson style activities that allow
a student to learn more about a subject they are passionate about. This means more opportunities in recreation, arts and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math).”
Richardson said money is being spent for after-school activities and he hopes the data will show how it can be spent more wisely.
He said $19.3 million was
spent for after-school activities the last 10 years in this county.
“We need to make sure the money is being invested into programs that will give students quality afterschool programs that interest them,” Richardson said. “Giving students more quality opportunities after school will have a positive impact on their future.”