Posted on June 29, 2006

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Wallace Foundation Awards $8 Million for After-School Programs

The D.C. Children and Youth Investment Trust Corp. has announced a three-year, $8 million grant from the New York City-based Wallace Foundation in support of the trust's efforts to improve after-school programs for students in Washington, D.C.

Along with Boston, Chicago, New York City, and Providence, Rhode Island, Washington is one of five cities selected to participate in the foundation's Learning in Communities initiative. Based on research which shows that many youth, especially in the middle school years, lose their focus, the initiative is designed to strengthen the District of Columbia's efforts to build closer partnerships among schools, city agencies, and community-based providers; produce diverse programs that fit children's needs and interests; and develop quality standards for programs and training providers. Led by the trust, a partnership of community agencies, local government, educators, parents, and private funders will also create a database that will enable officials to match children with programs and services and conduct a communications campaign to build awareness of the value of after-school programs.

Beginning in January, the initiative will serve about six hundred children in three D.C. schools, with more sites to be added in subsequent years. Ultimately, all middle schools in the district will have access to activities outside of regular school hours, including afternoons, weekends, and during the summer.

"Cities across the country want better ways to provide high-quality out-of-school learning opportunities to children who need it most — through understanding need, aligning programs with those needs, and tracking participation," said Nancy Devine, the foundation's director of arts and communities. "[W]e hope that this grant will...provide useful lessons for other cities."

D.C. mayor Anthony Williams said the grant will enable trust and city leaders to help the city's students achieve their fullest potential. "The only way we, as a city, can solve our problems," said Williams, "is by tackling them together."