CALIFORNIA — After-School Programs Help Keep Kids Out of the Juvenile Justice System
May 21st 2010
District Attorney says after-school hours are critical to public safety, citing new law enforcement report
Contact: Michael Klein, (415) 762-8276, mklein@calfightcrime.org
OAKLAND — Assemblymember Sandré Swanson (D-Alameda), Alameda County District Attorney Nancy O’Malley, Oakland Police Assistant Chief Howard Jordan, and Oakland Police Deputy Chief Jeffrey Israel today visited with kindergarten and 6th–8th grade students at Melrose Leadership Academy’s Community Bridges after-school program to see how their participation is keeping them engaged in productive activities and away from crime.
“As the county's head prosecutor, I know the hours after the school day ends are critical to public safety,” said Alameda County District Attorney Nancy O’Malley. “After-school programs encourage kids to thrive in school and life, while helping them avoid the traps of delinquent behavior, including drug use, vandalism and gang affiliation.”
Community Bridges is an innovative and mandatory “extended day” program for all middle school students and stays open until 6:00 p.m. for students to take classes in athletics, arts, leadership, and academic intervention. The program is financed through state after-school funding from the After School Education and Safety (ASES) program, which was established
as a result of Governor Schwarzenegger’s Proposition 49, enacted in 2002.
Local law enforcement leaders highlighted findings of a new report from Fight Crime: Invest in Kids, California’s After-School Commitment: Keeping Kids on Track and Out of Trouble. The report found that California’s groundbreaking investments in after-school programs are helping keep hundreds of thousands of students out of trouble and on track to success. In 2009–2010 Alameda County received over $30 million in state- and federal-funding for 192 after-school programs—176 of which are in low-income schools—serving over 22,200 students. Unfortunately, there are still 55 low-income schools in Alameda County not receiving state or federal after-school funding.
“It is important for the state to offer after-school programs to our school children so they have the option to participate in positive activities during those times when they are most vulnerable to peer pressure and unsafe activities,” said Assemblymember Sandré Swanson. “Not only do the programs offer safe places for these children, but they are also significant opportunities for children to learn.”
During their visit to the Community Bridges program at the Melrose Leadership Academy today, Assemblymember Swanson, D.A. O’Malley, Assistant Chief Jordan, and Deputy Chief Israel were taken on a tour of the school to see the students in action. Students in kindergarten and 6th through 8th grade were engaged in a number of educational activities focused on enrichment and leadership.
Moyra Contreras, Principal, Melrose Leadership Academy; Julia Fong Ma, Coordinator, After School Programs, Complementary Learning for Oakland Unified School District; Jane Nicholson, Director, Complementary Learning for Oakland Unified School District; and Michael Funk, Director of Policy and Partnerships, Aspiranet also participated in the event.
As the 2010–2011 legislative session continues, Fight Crime: Invest in Kids members will continue supporting the protection of investments like after-school programs that keep kids from becoming involved in crime, including by opposing the proposed elimination of most child care funding in the Governor’s May revise, which would deny after-school care to tens of thousands of school-age children from low-income working families.
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Fight Crime: Invest in Kids California is a bipartisan, non-profit, anti-crime organization led by 400 sheriffs, police chiefs, district attorneys, and victims of violence. Its mission is to take a critical look at the research about what really works to keep kids from becoming criminals. Among the strategies proven to be effective are preschool, after-school, dropout-prevention, child abuse and neglect prevention programs, and intensive interventions for juvenile offenders. www.fightcrime.org/ca
