Related<\/span>As Distance Learning Pushes Parents Into Pods, Some Look for Ways to Make the Model More Inclusive<\/h4><\/div><\/a><\/aside>\n Zitzner is opening up his 12 schools for \u201cremote out-of-home learning\u201d for students \u2014 a free service with lunch and Wi-Fi for students. He\u2019s not sure how he will pay for it yet, or exactly who will staff it, but he\u2019s committed to making it work. He\u2019s talking with Open Doors Academy, a local nonprofit that already offers afterschool work at some of his schools, and the Boys and Girls Clubs about adding programs beyond being just \u201cbabysitters of kids on computers.\u201d<\/p>\n
Already, 350 of the 2,000 families with children enrolled in the schools have expressed interest, Zitzner said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it will grow,\u201d Zitzner said, as families struggle to find child care. \u201cI don\u2019t think they have their heads around what it is yet. I think the closer we get to opening day, the more scrambling there will be with parents.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Cleveland school district, which aggressively partners with community groups to provide afterschool programs, has reached out to organizations across the city hoping many can host students during work hours. It has surveyed providers, asking who can take kids at their facilities and who can add enrichment programs at other locations. The hope is to release a list soon \u2014 the district won\u2019t say when \u2014 of sites where parents can send their kids while at work.<\/p>\n
The district has not committed to using any of its own school buildings yet, unlike Breakthrough. District CEO Eric Gordon did not respond to questions from The 74 about whether he would.<\/p>\n
Afterschool programs filling the gap<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\nGordon\u2019s attempts to rally afterschool providers fits the pattern of other cities tapping any partners and assets they can to help kids, said Jen Rinehart, vice president of research and policy for the Afterschool Alliance, a national organization promoting afterschool programs for children.<\/p>\n
\u201cSchools need other partners to step in,\u201d she said. \u201cCertainly, it\u2019s challenging, But it’s an opportunity to work together and co-create what a new learning day can look like.\u201d<\/p>\n
Money is one major challenge. As Rinehart noted, programs that traditionally operate just a few hours a day will now be open for as many as 10. That adds costs, so providers are seeking donors to help out.<\/p>\n
The Afterschool Alliance is also lobbying Congress for aid in its next coronavirus relief package. A key part will be changing rules for federal aid for meals and child care, along with rules for federal 21st Century Community Learning Centers grants, to allow money to be used for school-day services, not just afterschool activities as the law mandates now.<\/p>\n
Safety is a hurdle<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\nHealth risks from the virus are another major challenge, both for students and for staff.<\/p>\n
In Cleveland, safety worries are keeping the Cleveland Public Library, which is usually a standby for kids without computers or home Wi-Fi to do homework, from taking in kids for school days. Director Felton Thomas is limiting visits and computer use to one hour because employees object to having kids there for longer.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf the schools don\u2019t feel safe, why should the library take it on?\u201d Thomas said employees keep asking him.<\/p>\n
But afterschool providers are not as worried. The number of kids will be much smaller than at a school. They can limit risks further by dividing kids into small groups that avoid contact with other groups. The Boys and Girls Clubs and YMCA also did summer camps to test out their safety precautions, which gives them confidence for the fall.<\/p>\n
Open Doors Academy, which is still running summer school, offers a look at how it can work. All students and visitors must wear masks, though on a recent visit kids often let them down below their noses or to their chins when at their own desks. Staff take the temperature of everyone at the door, and everyone answers questions about whether they feel symptoms or have had contact with COVID carriers.<\/p>\n
Inside a classroom at the program\u2019s headquarters, tables are spaced six feet apart or more in rows along the outer walls. Students mostly keep to their own assigned space, even eating lunch there. They are usually masked, though masks slipping below noses and even below chins sometimes are not as big a worry, if students are in their assigned space.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf we run sessions small enough and we follow our protocols … we feel really good about being able to run them effectively and give the kids what they need,\u201d said Dorothy Moulthrop, Open Doors\u2019 CEO.<\/p>\n<\/figure>Related<\/span>Sign up for The 74\u2019s newsletter<\/h4><\/div><\/a><\/aside>\n\n\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The coronavirus may have closed school buildings in Cleveland for at least several weeks, but it\u2019s not stopping nonprofits like the Boys and Girls Clubs or the YMCA from giving students a place to do their online lessons while their parents work. The organizations are joining a growing movement in Cleveland and nationally to provide […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":559770,"menu_order":0,"template":"","categories":[190],"tags":[1057,936,1056],"series":[1059],"class_list":["post-559768","article","type-article","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-cleveland","tag-instagram","tag-pandemic","series-pandemic"],"apple_news_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.the74million.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/article\/559768","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.the74million.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/article"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.the74million.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/article"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/www.the74million.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/article\/559768\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":559871,"href":"https:\/\/www.the74million.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/article\/559768\/revisions\/559871"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.the74million.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/559770"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.the74million.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=559768"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.the74million.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=559768"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.the74million.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=559768"},{"taxonomy":"series","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.the74million.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/series?post=559768"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}