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Community Learning Centers need help

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Saturday, Jun 28, 2008 - 12:20:44 am CDT

Community groups need to step up to fill the gaps the city is leaving in the Community Learning Center initiative.

The programs provide a constructive, enriching environment and educational services during hours when too many children are without adult supervision because their parents are in the workforce.

Because of severe city budget shortfalls, Mayor Chris Beutler has announced that the city plans to end its role as a direct provider of services.

The city’s actions are understandable. Nonprofit agencies and other private groups can fill the role of direct service providers at less cost than the city, which usually has higher personnel costs.

The city plans to continue providing support for the CLC program in other ways, however. And it should.

The before- and after-school program benefits the community in many ways, especially in the inner city.

The 3-6 p.m. time slot is prime time for juvenile crime and experimentation with drugs, alcohol and sex.

Various studies have shown that students who participate in after-school programs are less likely to skip classes and drop out of school.

A 2007 report showed that on a national basis 43 percent of regular attendees at community learning centers improved their reading scores, and 49 percent increased their math scores.

In Lincoln, there are 23 centers — 18 at elementary schools and five at middle schools — that serve nearly 4,000 students.

Currently, city government pays the salaries of four of the 15 supervisors. The four employees oversee programs at six centers. The city also provides before- and after-school programs at an additional eight sites. City support totaled about $178,000.

Next school year the city wants to give up its role as lead agency at three school sites and to stop providing before- and after-school programs at four sites.

So far, Family Service is the only agency that has agreed to take over from the city. CLC officials are still looking for agencies to take over programs at Pershing Elementary, Norwood Park Elementary, Mickle Middle School and next year at Belmont Elementary.

The lead agencies that will be involved next year plan to spend $844,000 in the fiscal year that starts July 1.

The sum is the necessary seed money that provides the organizational framework for the hundreds of hours that community volunteers put into the program, offering students the chance to participate in everything from learning photography to playing chess.

One reason that the program has grown so rapidly in Lincoln is because those involved recognize immediately that they are changing young lives for the better. The CLC initiative offers an opportunity for local private groups to have a positive and enduring impact in the community.


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russell wrote on June 28, 2008 7:54 am:
" This whole "budget crisis" is because a very vocal few have been pounding their mantra of high taxes for the past year. A $5 per month tax increase (on a $150,000 house) would maintain the status quo of last budget year. I agree that private groups now need step up with their money to continue this vital program (if for no other reason) so Lincoln can continue training the next generation of employees. I challenge the "taxes too high group" be a leader in assuming part of that responsibility. "

 First Step wrote on June 28, 2008 8:26 am:
" This plea from the LJS is needed because the Mayor has cut off a large chunk of the city's support for this worthy program. The first step is to eliminate the spoils system job the Mayor created for his buddy Jon Carlson and put the money back where it can do some good for neighborhoods, in the Community Learning Centers. "

 What wrote on June 28, 2008 12:09 pm:
" I have a very divese view than "russell" and diversity is good right?
First I'd like to know what the "professional" teachers are doing that comes up so short that we need to fund comunnity collages to offer remedial High School education programs.(52 percent of all freshmen will not finnish collage in four years and 48 percent will not finnish in six years).Why should any taxpayer spend 293 million dollars a year only to then need to fund addition "educational" after school programs?
The most fundemental issue I have is that these are not the "cities" kids!They are to provence of their parents not the city....if the parents don't value their snoflakes education and future how and or why should I place a higher priority on it than they do??
Now to me this is just another way to create government jobs and had very little to do with "children" much like LPS...it's for the adults not the snowflakes!
Before folks like "Russell" rush in to spend even more of my money I'd like some accountability of what we are getting for 293,000.000.00 a year besides a better than 50 failure rate at the university level! What "professional" would go to that braggs about a better than 50 percent failure rate? "

 dewboy wrote on June 28, 2008 1:59 pm:
" Now is the time for our esteemed Chamber of Commerce, and their Business members to step up to the plate and do something worthwhile for a change. In essence, quit living of the taxpayers and contribute. After all, you receive hundreds of thousands of dollars a year from the city for nothing but to further your own agenda. Come on big timers STEP UP. "

 get the facts wrote on June 28, 2008 11:28 pm:
" Actually, the city doesn't pay for four supervisors...a good chunk of that money comes from grants. I know this because I used to teach at one of the schools the City has a CLC in. "What" needs to understand that so many of the kids we teach come to us with a variety of challenges, not enough food, lack of sleep, domestic violence, homelessness, learning disabilities, behavior problems, the list goes on and on. After school programs help to support what we teach during the day. Kids learn in many different ways and never at the same pace. Teachers only have so many hat tricks and so much time. After school programs help to support and teach our future leaders, hopefully one of them will become Mayor one day and see the importance of programs like CLC's. Please don't knock it until you have experienced it. "

 Curly wrote on July 5, 2008 7:37 pm:
" Understand why the city backed out of continuing to fund the CLC's through parks and recs dept., they got saddled w/ a 1/2 million dollar increase due to a change in federal guideline that determine CLC's to be childcare and not activity centers. City couldn't afford the increase.

Another option might be to structure CLC fees like other intities in Lincoln that are financially self sufficient. Charge for the services and provide a sliding fee scale for need based cases.

The success of the Lincoln's CLCs is the consistant staffing parks and recs provides that create long term relationships, bonds, mentors and friends. They don't rely on volunteers that have frequent turn over. Some CLC staff have watched a generation grow to be young adults.

Golf course pay for themselves through fees in Lincoln, how about structuring CLCs on same fee basis? Turning them over to non profits is a mistake. "

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