This story originally appeared in the Aug. 23, 2024 edition of the LINK Reader.
With school not in session during the summer, opportunities for children’s enrichment and learning are pivotal.
Participating in summer programming – particularly those which facilitate learning through fun and engaging summer activities, including field trips and group play – prevents the loss of academic skills in children during their months out of class.
According to the Northwest Evaluation Association, studies as far back as the 1970s show that children can experience learning loss during summer break when children aren’t involved in summer programs that provide academic benefits. The results show drops in test scores in subjects such as math and reading.
While day camps can serve as valuable experiences for summer enrichment, they also can cost hundreds of dollars, an option that isn’t always feasible for families seeking child care, extracurricular activities and learning opportunities.
In some of the region’s most economically disadvantaged cities – including Covington, Newport and Silver Grove – where nearly a quarter of residents are in poverty, according to Be NKY Growth Partnership, organizations are doing their part to give families affordable opportunities for their children.
Brighton Center
The Brighton Center, based in Newport but with locations across the region, has provided afterschool and summer care for children for 58 years. Established in 1966 to help families meet their basic needs – including education, housing, financial wellness and workforce development – the organization has expanded to provide 45 programs serving nearly 25,000 individuals in eight Northern Kentucky counties. Many of those programs provide educational and experiential growth for children. All are free to attend.
“Our youth program really focuses on helping youth figure out what their next step is going to be, whether it’s postsecondary education or career, and what options are available to them,” said Deana Sowders, the Brighton Center’s marketing and communications specialist. “It’s equipping individuals and families at any point in their life to be prepared to take the next step with confidence and have the education and resources that they need to do that.”
One example is the Youth Leadership Development program, which aims to provide middle-school-aged children with opportunities to learn leadership skills through community service projects. The YLD typically functions as an afterschool program for children ages 11 to 15. It’s open to students from schools in Boone, Campbell and Kenton counties, as well as local community groups, but carries on through the summer.
According to Sowders, participating students find community with one another by going on field trips and taking part in service projects with other local nonprofit organizations.
Every summer, for example, the Brighton Center partners students with Magnified Giving – a local nonprofit focused on getting children involved in philanthropy – for its Camp Give program. Camp Give, a weeklong, so-called “kindness” camp, helps children connect and identify their community’s needs and participate in service projects to resolve them, all in a fun camp environment.
Alternatively, for elementary-age children and younger, the Brighton Center also runs two child development centers. They served over 120 children last year.
The Early Scholars and the Bright Days child development centers are located in the west and east ends of Newport, respectively. The centers serve children ages six weeks to 12 years, preparing them for their upcoming year of school with classroom-based instruction and providing healthful meals and snacks through the day.
“When it comes to the high cost of child care and everything else families are being faced with right now, there’s a lot that haven’t experienced super tight budgets or need before,” said Sowders. “Knowing where to go for resources is critical to helping those families maintain their housing and their budget and what they need so that they don’t get in a more precarious situation.”
NKY Community Action Commission
The Brighton Center is far from the only organization preparing Northern Kentucky’s youngest for academic success. With 11 locations across Campbell, Kenton, Boone and Pendleton counties, the Northern Kentucky Community Action Commission’s Head Start program provides preschool-like instruction for 3- and 4-year-olds in low-income families.
According to the NKCAC, children in Head Start spend the summer preparing to enter kindergarten, at no cost to participating families.
“Children are provided a preschool education so that they can enter kindergarten in the school system on grade level at the same level as children who come from families where they could afford to pay for private preschool education,” said Rhonda Chisenhall, NKCAC’s vice president of community development. “It’s laying that foundation for a successful educational career.”
Education at the NKCAC follows four main components: education, health and nutrition, parent involvement and social services. Children are instructed through play and developmentally appropriate activities in the classroom; provided the chance to serve themselves healthful meals; and engage in meaningful conversation with their teachers. Parents are encouraged to become leaders in their children’s lives and education, and are elected as members of a parents committee to participate in making decisions about the Head Start program’s operation.
Chisenhall added that a majority of the need they experience comes to their more urban centers, including Newport, Covington and Burlington, and that not all families have the means to transport their children to the program. To accommodate these circumstances, the commission also offers a home-based Head Start program, through which an instructor visits once a week and provides individualized lesson planning to children during 90-minute sessions. The curriculum includes education, health, nutrition and family services.
Boys and Girls Clubs
Open for elementary to high school-aged children, the Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky serve over 5,000 youths across seven clubs with after-school and summer programming. Three clubs exist in Northern Kentucky – the Clem & Ann Buenger Club in Newport, the Kenton County Club in Covington and a shared space club at Tichenor Middle School in Erlanger.
The organization offers tools to help its members achieve academic success, maintain a healthy lifestyle and serve their communities.
Under the Graduate program, the clubs provide mentorship, tutoring and academic support with incentives for achievement including field trips, games and prizes. In Fit for Life, children partake in 45 minutes of daily exercise, including sports and outdoor playtime, as well as instruction on nutrition and healthy lifestyles. Lastly, Ready to Serve intends to instill a sense of importance in children when it comes to giving back to their communities, helping them connect with service projects such as community cleanups.
YMCA
With locations in Fort Thomas and Burlington, Northern Kentucky YMCAs have long been a resource for children’s enrichment, whether socializing in classrooms or burning off energy on the field. According to Joe Geraci, director of membership and transformation at the Campbell County YMCA, various programs can keep children entertained through the day.
The YMCA offers a summer camp to children ages 5 to 12 every weekday until school starts back up in August. Children play games, participate in team-building activities and challenges, swim daily and attend field trips. The YMCA also hosts beginner-level sports teams – tee-ball, baseball and basketball in the summer, and soccer starting in the fall. Teams are grouped by age and run for eight weeks at a time.
“Sports are usually for kids 3 to 9 years old, member or nonmember, and you don’t have to be from the area,” said Geraci. “You can sign up anytime for any sport, and there’s no requirements.”
Membership on YMCA youth sports teams runs about $85 for members and $170 for nonmembers, and summer camp costs $25 per week for members and $45 for nonmembers. Geraci added that membership discounts can be offered to low-income families through the organization’s Membership For All program, which offers a sliding fee scale designed to fit the financial situation of an individual family.
We Rock the Spectrum
We Rock the Spectrum, a children’s gym in Erlanger, offers a different kind of athletic play. Becky and Joe Stenger, parents of four, including a daughter with autism, opened the gym to be a public place where children of all ability levels could have fun without judgment.
All of the gym’s equipment improves different skills for children, including balance, motor function, sensory management, social skills, core strength and hand-eye coordination, among other things. It includes classic gym equipment such as swings, crash mats, a rock wall, trampolines and a zipline, as well as a calming room for children to regulate their emotions and reduce negative sensory input, classrooms for private events and parties, an arts and crafts area, and sensory-based toys.
According to Becky Stenger, the facility regularly hosts open play, where children, accompanied by a parent or guardian, can come in and have free rein of the gym’s play equipment. Therapists are also welcome to accompany families and conduct therapy sessions. Through the month, the gym hosts classes and workshops for children, including yoga, music, dance and sign language.
We Rock the Spectrum is also implementing its new We Rock Care program, a drop-in service that allows parents to drop off children with employees for care and playtime during the day for $15 an hour. Similarly, the gym hosts Parents Night Out once a month, a three-hour event where parents can drop their children off to play and participate in group activities.
“We provide that need for community, for having a place for special needs kids, and all kids, to come and feel welcome,” said Stenger. “Our big motto is, ‘Finally, a place where you never have to say “I’m sorry.”’”