Program keeps kids busy after school.
Feizal Amin, left, and Emily Huynh are members of the Junior Chefs Club, part of the newly launched Beyond 3:30 program.
Photo/ERIC HEINO
A police officer once told trustee Sheila Cary-Meagher that if she wants to keep her students safe and healthy, she should keep them in school until 8 p.m.It may not sound like an idea many students would embrace, but with a fun selection of sports, arts, literacy and culinary programs, the Toronto District School Board's (TDSB) freshly launched Beyond 3:30 initiative is quickly gaining popularity among students at eight at-risk schools across the city.
"This is what changes a neighbourhood and this is what changes a school; involving the kids not only in book-learning, but in the process of body development, mind stretching and nutrition," said Cary-Meagher at Rockcliffe Middle School in York during the launch of Beyond 3:30 on Tuesday, Nov. 17.
Rockcliffe's student participants greeted parents and supporters with snacks prepared by the Junior Chefs Club, a painted mural from their after-school art class, and a performance by dancers, all taught in collaboration with local colleges and professional organizations that are helping to run the classes.
The Beyond 3:30 program is intended to keep grades 6 to 8 students involved in constructive activity after school hours that may not otherwise be available in their communities. Of the eight schools participating in the program, four are in North York, two in Scarborough, one in York and one in Etobicoke. All of the schools are located in areas where students at this critical age are faced with the risk of involvement in unhealthy or criminal activity if they aren't engaged in something constructive.
Former Toronto Argonaut Chuck Winters attended the launch to explain the impact that making the right choices can have on young lives.
"I didn't know at the time that choices I made to play sports after school when I was seven would impact the rest of my life," said Winters, who grew up in a rough neighbourhood in Detroit. "You need to make an investment in your own future. You have come here and made a choice to live a better lifestyle."
These options to invest in new skills weren't easy to arrange, but involved a year's worth of dedicated work and financial support from the Toronto Community Foundation and the Toronto Foundation for Student Success. Since organizers began the planning process last November, the Toronto Community Foundation has been able to arrange for a $380,000 donation, which will help, along with other sponsorships, to support the 4,675 students at these eight schools to stay on the right track.
The schools involved in the program are Joseph Brant Senior Public School and Dr. Marion Hillard in Scarborough, Brookview Middle School, Lawrence Heights Middle School, Valley Park and Beverly Heights Middle School in North York, Smithfield Middle School in Etobicoke and Rockcliffe Middle School in York.