Dufur School District’s after school program is offered to all students in grades 3-12 with a current enrollment of 66 students. During the program, which lasts three hours from 3:20-6:20, students receive snack time, outdoor activities, homework help and tutoring, literacy activities, STEM activities, and enrichment activities such as arts and crafts and cooking. Additionally, Dufur School partners with OSU 4-H Extension services to provide activities such as gardening club and computer club. The program is run by four adult staff and five high school aides. One of the best parts of the program is the collaboration that happens between all ages of attendees; it is fun to see the collaborative relationships that form amongst elementary, middle, and high school students in the program.
North Wasco County School District provides the After School Academy at Chenowith Elementary School and The Dalles High School. The After School Academy at Chenowith is open to students in kindergarten through 5th grade, with 25 learners currently enrolled. We offer a snack, academic homework help, along with physical enrichment activities, and a variety of activities that include STEM learning. Additionally we partner with Arts in Education of The Gorge and OSU 4 H Extension services which provides activities such as yoga, Robotics, Computer and Video Club, science meets art activities, Chinese and Salmon cultural activities. The program operates Monday through Thursday and is run by one coordinator, two assistants and one teen helper.
The Dalles High School The 21st Century After School Academy component runs with a very successful Robotics program. Currently the program is maxed out at 22 enrolled students, attending after school on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 2:45 - 5:30, with weekend Saturday tournaments at least once a month. Robotics is a perfect example of applying the STEM knowledge and concepts learned in the classroom to actual use when attending competitions against teams from all over the world. The team will be attending a large 150-team tournament in Las Vegas in February to hone their skills even further than they have while dominating local competitions held throughout the year. Currently Riverhawks Robotics has one team qualified for the 2023 U.S. Open Nationals (where they placed 4th in 2022) to be held in March and also will be competing to defend their tournament championship from last year at the 2023 Oregon State Championships for a chance to return to the 2023 VEX World Championships held in Dallas, where last year one of our teams placed in the top 8 out of 800 teams from all over the world.
Additional sites in North Wasco County School District will add the After School Academy starting in February, 2023.
Photo credit: Laura Rivera on Unsplash.