Every school day buses from Vernon Parish Schools stop at the corner of North Gladys and Nona Streets in Leesville for elementary and middle school children to scamper down the hill on Gladys to the Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Center as Director Leroy Stokes watches at the front door.
Thus begins the K-6 After School Homework Assistance Program Monday through Friday during the school year at the Center. Many parents take advantage of the program which provides a structured, safe environment for their children from the time they are dismissed from school until they are picked up.
“There is a definite need for this program not just in this neighborhood but in every community,” said Stokes. “Young children are being preyed upon by nefarious characters daily. The Center is a safe haven where they can do their homework and learn some much needed social skills until their parents arrive.”
Statistics show the hours from school dismissal until parents get home from work are potentially the most dangerous for school-aged children, especially younger ones. It is during that time when they are susceptible to the influence of older children and the negative influence of the streets.
Educators, city officials and parents across the country have recognized the considerable benefits quality after school programs can provide. These programs give students many opportunities for growth and learning they might not find elsewhere. In 2000 Sandra Feldman, then president of the American Federation of Teachers, wrote a "wish list" in which she asked for "more learning time for children who need it.” She also wrote, “There is accumulating research that after school programs, summer school and extended days and years enable children who are behind to catch up.”
Research has shown that many children need the kind of extras that some children take for granted but that too many poor children don't get. And, there is growing evidence from around the country that these programs are in fact paying off.
Anna Janice who runs a tax preparation and bookkeeping business in Leesville has enrolled her twin 11-year-old sons Akeem and Raheem Johnson at the King Center for the past two-years and is impressed by the program.
“It is a great help to me,” Janice explained. “I am a single parent, and I work late and sometimes my time is limited. In the past I had to hurry and work with my sons on their homework late in the evening. Now they have their assignments completed in the first part of afternoon, it is checked and they get to bed earlier and are better rested the next day.”
Children and youth who attend after school programs do better in school, and are safer and less likely to get into trouble in the hours after the end of the school day. Nationally participants in after school programs show increased interest and ability in reading; develop new skills and interests; show improved school attendance; turn in more and better quality homework; and show higher aspirations for the future, including intention to complete high school and go to college.
While most educators would agree that supporting academic skills is an important goal for after school programs, some also stress the importance of integrating academic supports into a larger program that also promotes the social, emotional and physical development of the children they serve. Stokes agrees.
“The Homework Assistance Program also provides healthy recreation in order to promote and enhance physical, mental and social development of the youth as a whole,” he said.
Anna Janice, who now donates school supplies to the Center, also recommends it to other parents.
“It is a very good program," she said. "They have highly qualified individuals assisting students. They have been a great help.”
Stokes says the initiative is the result of a collective effort to make a difference in the city.
“We certainly appreciate the commitment the mayor and the City Council of Leesville have made to the program. We also have tremendous support from members of the community and local businesses," he said. "Many people have ridiculed the notion of the village raising young people, but here in Leesville it is a reality and we are all better off because of it.”
For more information about the MLK Homework Assistance Program call: (337) 238-3271.
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Every school day buses from Vernon Parish Schools stop at the corner of North Gladys and Nona Streets in Leesville for elementary and middle school children to scamper down the hill on Gladys to the Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Center as Director Leroy Stokes watches at the front door.
Thus begins the K-6 After School Homework Assistance Program Monday through Friday during the school year at the Center. Many parents take advantage of the program which provides a structured, safe environment for their children from the time they are dismissed from school until they are picked up.
“There is a definite need for this program not just in this neighborhood but in every community,” said Stokes. “Young children are being preyed upon by nefarious characters daily. The Center is a safe haven where they can do their homework and learn some much needed social skills until their parents arrive.”
Statistics show the hours from school dismissal until parents get home from work are potentially the most dangerous for school-aged children, especially younger ones. It is during that time when they are susceptible to the influence of older children and the negative influence of the streets.
Educators, city officials and parents across the country have recognized the considerable benefits quality after school programs can provide. These programs give students many opportunities for growth and learning they might not find elsewhere. In 2000 Sandra Feldman, then president of the American Federation of Teachers, wrote a "wish list" in which she asked for "more learning time for children who need it.” She also wrote, “There is accumulating research that after school programs, summer school and extended days and years enable children who are behind to catch up.”
Research has shown that many children need the kind of extras that some children take for granted but that too many poor children don't get. And, there is growing evidence from around the country that these programs are in fact paying off.
Anna Janice who runs a tax preparation and bookkeeping business in Leesville has enrolled her twin 11-year-old sons Akeem and Raheem Johnson at the King Center for the past two-years and is impressed by the program.
“It is a great help to me,” Janice explained. “I am a single parent, and I work late and sometimes my time is limited. In the past I had to hurry and work with my sons on their homework late in the evening. Now they have their assignments completed in the first part of afternoon, it is checked and they get to bed earlier and are better rested the next day.”
Children and youth who attend after school programs do better in school, and are safer and less likely to get into trouble in the hours after the end of the school day. Nationally participants in after school programs show increased interest and ability in reading; develop new skills and interests; show improved school attendance; turn in more and better quality homework; and show higher aspirations for the future, including intention to complete high school and go to college.
While most educators would agree that supporting academic skills is an important goal for after school programs, some also stress the importance of integrating academic supports into a larger program that also promotes the social, emotional and physical development of the children they serve. Stokes agrees.
“The Homework Assistance Program also provides healthy recreation in order to promote and enhance physical, mental and social development of the youth as a whole,” he said.
Anna Janice, who now donates school supplies to the Center, also recommends it to other parents.
“It is a very good program," she said. "They have highly qualified individuals assisting students. They have been a great help.”
Stokes says the initiative is the result of a collective effort to make a difference in the city.
“We certainly appreciate the commitment the mayor and the City Council of Leesville have made to the program. We also have tremendous support from members of the community and local businesses," he said. "Many people have ridiculed the notion of the village raising young people, but here in Leesville it is a reality and we are all better off because of it.”
For more information about the MLK Homework Assistance Program call: (337) 238-3271.
