January 8, 2001
Who's caring for middle-school kids?
___By Yvonne Betowt
___Religion News Service
___HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (RNS)--When picking up her two sons from school each day in southeast Huntsville, Sheri Clark often witnessed middle school-age students involved in some kind of fracas, injured from a fall or a fight, or being harassed by high school students.
___Nearly every afternoon, Clark, a stay-at-home mom, ended up with a houseful of neighborhood kids. She fed them snacks, bandaged scraped knees and called their working parents if something happened she couldn't fix with a hug, some cookies or a bandage.
MIDDLE SCHOOLERS at Aldersgate United Methodist Church's after-school program play in a band created by the church. (RNS photo by Eric Schultz)
___Today, Clark continues to hand out hugs, cookies and bandages, but she's getting paid--albeit a nominal amount--to do so as director of the after-school care program for middle school students at Aldersgate United Methodist Church in Huntsville.
___"Kids that age need supervision, and I saw the signs that they weren't getting it," said Clark, who teaches seventh- and eighth-graders in Sunday School at the church. "I just love middle school students, and I felt led by the Lord to do this. We did a survey at two middle schools to see if there was an interest, and we had 10 people return the forms. I sold the idea to my church, and they have really embraced it."
___A recent report by the U.S. Census Bureau found 6.9 million children ages 5 to 14 in the United States are routinely staying at home alone six hours per week. About 65 percent of that group is between 12 and 14--the most dangerous ages to leave children alone, according to Harvard Medical School pediatrics professor Berry Brazelton, author of "Irreducible Needs of Children."
___"We know from one study from the Academy of Pediatrics that young adolescents who don't have supervision after school are more prone to truancy, drug addiction, early sexual activity and so on," Brazelton said in an article, "Latchkey Blues" on ABCnews.com. He also said studies on the effects of being left home alone are just being conducted, and the impact can vary greatly among children.
___"Every child is different, but I would be just as worried about a middle school child being home alone as an elementary school child," he said, adding that 17 or 18 is a more appropriate age level to begin leaving kids at home alone. He recommends high-quality after-school programs for latchkey children but emphasizes that family time is "the best way" to spend time together.
___The Aldersgate after-school program is held at a house adjacent to the church property, which was purchased for use as a youth center. While there, the students do homework, practice their band instruments and play games such as basketball, kick ball and ping pong.
___Aldersgate not only offers after-school care but provides transportation from two local middle schools.
___Three years ago, Farley Community Church, also in southeast Huntsville, started an after-school care program for grades kindergarten through eight. One van picked up between 12 and 15 students at two middle schools and transported them to the church's temporary trailers.
___Today, with more than 100 students, a paid staff of 16, a renovated school bus and a two-story building, the Farley program has by far exceeded anything envisioned by the pastor, David Blakeney, or the director, Donna Calloway.
___"When we started the church, this was one of our first ministries," Blakeney said. "It has gone way beyond my expectations. We did a demographic study before we even started the church (four years ago) and it was amazing to find so many families in this area with two working parents or who are single parents.
___"Our emphasis was meeting community needs, and we felt this was a much-needed one."
___Blakeney, who formed a musical band with the seventh- and eighth-graders, has a devotional time with all the students each day at 3:30 p.m., followed by snacks, play time and homework time. Each Friday, the children do crafts and activities, or take field trips to places such as the skating rink.
___Although the Huntsville city schools have an after-school care program for grades kindergarten through five, few after-school day care programs were available for middle school students.
___The Aldersgate program costs $40 per student, but the church's pastor, Mitchell Williams, said the goal is to reduce the cost and to add a second permanent staff member by the 2001-02 school year.
___The Farley program costs $25 per week for one and $40 for two in a family. It runs from 3 to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday. The summer program also is open from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.
___
Get printer-friendly version of this story
Send this story to a friend
Contents/ Masthead / Why We're Here / Links / Archive / E-mail us/ SUBSCRIBE!
