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Addressing the Risks and Rewards of 3-6 pm |
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The bell rings, signaling the start of afterschool for a half million children in the Central Valley. For too many this time is unsupervised, marked by the risks associated with boredom and unstructured time.
The risky behaviors: bullying, drugs, gangs, alcohol, sexual activity, pornography, crime, suicide, and other self-destructive activities.
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STEM Learning Meets Exercise and the Great Outdoors |
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For American youth, the obesity rate is at an all time high. According to the Institute of Medicine, childhood obesity has doubled over the past 30 years. Simultaneously, once the school day ends, students are spending less time in “the great outdoors” and more time inside with video games and television.
So, how can Central Valley afterschool programs fight against this rising epidemic? They only have to look as far as their backyard.
Central Valley students have access to a treasure trove of outdoor activities that promote health as well as science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) learning. There are numerous programs dedicated to pull students away from an overabundance of electronic stimulation in order to connect them with exciting adventures nature has to offer.
San Joaquin River Parkway and Conservation Trust
With their close proximity to the San Joaquin River and Camp Pashayan, a 31-acre reserve along the San Joaquin River Parkway, afterschool students at Central Unified School District’s Rio Vista Middle School have benefitted from an outdoor learning partnership with the San Joaquin River Parkway and Conservation Trust.
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Pro Youth/HEART: Emerging from a Senseless Act of Gang Violence |
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Pride and passion. These are the two key ingredients needed for any organization to be successful. It is this combination that has led Pro Youth/HEART to touch the lives of more than 4,000 afterschool students throughout Tulare County. With a 90 percent positive approval rating from parents, one question remains—how did Pro Youth/HEART become such a powerful advocate for afterschool care?
It was a senseless act of violence that rocked the community nearly two decades ago that became the catalyst for change. A local doctor sitting at a stoplight in his car with his toddler daughter was caught in the crossfire between two gangs. The man was hit by a stray bullet and killed.
Through an outpouring of concern and a deep desire to stop the gang violence, Pro Youth (which had been operating for several years under the name, Visalians for a Gang-Free Community) wanted to take a stand. Answering the request of the youth in the area –who knew they were more likely to get into trouble afterschool and also afraid of being victims of violence during that time—the Homework, Enrichment, Acceleration, Recreation and Teamwork (HEART) program became a safe haven for students afterschool in Tulare County.
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