Funds jump-start 2,000 after-school programs
Sacramento Bee 1/17/07
It was the first day of after-school care on this south Sacramento campus -- one of more than 2,000 schools across California, and 85 in Sacramento County, that are opening after-school programs this month with funding from Proposition 49.
Remember that ballot measure?
It's the one that launched Arnold Schwarzenegger's political career before he ran for governor. In 2002 voters approved the proposition, which called for the state to spend $550 million on after-school programs every year when the state's economy is doing well.
But it's taken five years for the money to start flowing.
"We've all been anxiously waiting, and finally this was the year it kicked in," said Andee Press-Dawson, program manager with Sacramento START, which runs after-school programs at area schools. "This is a huge one-time expansion of after-school programs."
The first batch of programs opened Tuesday, Press-Dawson said. More are scheduled to start in the weeks ahead.
The programs are opening at schools where at least 50 percent of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunches.
But all children who attend the school -- regardless of family income -- may participate at no cost.
Programs on most participating campuses serve about 80 students and run from the time school gets out until 6 p.m. They include recreational activities, homework time, a snack and enrichment such as drama, dance and art.
The homework time was what 11-year-old Marisol Lopez liked best about after-school care at Camellia Basic Elementary. She said she used to spend after-school hours at her grandparents' house, eating homemade Mexican food, watching television and doing homework until her mom finished work and picked her up.
"Usually I struggle with getting help because my grandma doesn't really know that much English," Marisol said. "My grandpa, either."
Now she works on spelling homework with a classmate in the cafeteria. Tutors circulate to see if students need help.
"I was looking forward to going here because I take a really long time on my homework and it will make me finish faster," Marisol said.
The influx of Proposition 49 money has nearly doubled the number of publicly funded after-school programs in California, said John Malloy of the state Department of Education.
State and federal funds previously paid for about 2,000 programs, he said. Now the state pays for about 4,000 programs, and federal funding will cover even more.