Students sang, rapped, danced and cheered in celebration of the incredible after-school learning they receive through the ACE program.
Hundreds of parents, students, educators, business leaders, policymakers and others gathered Oct.25 at the Hunt County Courthouse to mark the 19th annual Lights On Afterschool, the nation’s only nationwide rally for afterschool programs. The Greenville ISD ACE (Afterschool Centers on Education) Rally is one of thousands of Lights On events across the country this month.
City, community and school district dignitaries spoke, sharing their support for the ACE, and the crowd proudly cheered on the students who showed off their talents and enthusiasm.
Afterschool programs keep children safe, inspire them to learn, and give working families peace of mind during the afternoon hours when unsupervised kids can get into trouble. But because of funding difficulties, we don’t have nearly enough programs, which means too many children and too many families don’t benefit. In fact, for every child in an afterschool program, the parents of two more say they’d enroll their children if a program were available, according to a 2014 study commissioned by the Afterschool Alliance. In Greenville last year, our ACE Department was able to open the doors to over 60% more students than proposed in the 21st Century Community Learning Center Cycle 9 Grant. Great job, Greenville!
Our continued challenge in the afterschool movement and as a country: To make sure every child has access to afterschool. We hope you’ll join us in supporting afterschool programs by coming out to celebrate Lights On Afterschool!
