#1
Kenya Ortiz, Bret Harte Community Academy, after-school program, Photography

by "I like the after-school program because they are very informative in language development and learning how to speak properly to people. I am in the after-school program called Photography. I like it very much. Without this program, I would not have learn

#2

Tyler Stansbury, Bret Harte Community Academy, after-school program, Photography

"If this program was not here, I would be sitting at home and would not be as active. All the kids in this program are very grateful that we have the Academy programs to go to after school."

After-School Programs: An Endangered Species?

By Geri Murphy, Ph.D., Project Director, Bret Harte Area Community Collaborative

Five years ago there were few after-school alternatives for children or youth in the MacArthur neighborhoods. If a child was not interested in team sports such as basketball, there was nothing to do. Vandalism and other youth-related crimes were frequently reported in the community, particularly between the hours of 3 and 6 p.m. Youth congregated on street corners, waiting for or causing problems.

In the past five years after-school programs were created through the efforts of individuals and community-based nonprofit organizations in collaboration with school staffs. Funds come from private foundations, the city's Measure K grants, and special state and federal education grants. These grants, however, are competitive and short-lived. Regardless of how great a program might be, how critical a need it might fill, once the grant funds are gone, so is the program! And that is what is about to occur with the after-school programs in the MacArthur neighborhoods unless the community takes action.

Scores of reports and national surveys assert the value of after-school programs in changing the lives of children and youth, in reducing juvenile-related crime, violence, substance abuse, and school-dropout figures. So what are we doing in Oakland to assure that quality free/low-cost after-school programs are available to children and youth in every neighborhood?

In 1998, the East Bay Community Foundation received a grant of approximately $12 million from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to develop an action plan to increase the health and well-being of children in Oakland. Those efforts now focus on after-school programs. The heads of local public agencies comprise the governing board for this grant without, however, appropriate representation of Oakland's diverse neighborhoods on this board.

Much money has been spent on an outside consultant to conduct a citywide needs assessment of after-school programs. The assessment found the gaps around the city that everyone already knew about. As we watch our programs disappear, the problem is becoming politicized. Layers of bureaucracy are being created, money is being spent for people to meet and plan, yet no funds assure the continuation of existing after-school programs.

We need a source of regular funding that will provide and sustain quality free/low-cost after-school programming, available to all children and youth in Oakland. This funding should not require annual competitions, constant uncertainty of one's future, and pitting one programagainst another. The city needs to step up and take a decisive role in securing that funding, and not leave it to the school district or the vagaries of chance. Our children, our futures, deserve better; they deserve more.

Speak to your city councilmember and make certain that the MacArthur neighborhoods have a strong and consistent voice in determining the future of after-school programming in Oakland. Talk with your neighbors. Let's act together to support our children, our community, and save our after-school programs!

For more information on after-school programs in this community, please contact Geri Murphy, Bret Harte Area Community Collaborative, 879-3634.