‘Lights on Afterschool’ Brings Nationwide Rally to Flint and Genesee County

On any given weekday in Michigan, thousands of children will go unsupervised between the hours of 3 p.m. and 6 p.m. That’s roughly the same time students in YouthQuest are eating a nutritious dinner, engaging in academic activities, going on field trips and just having fun.

On Oct. 26, families and community members are invited to experience the positive impact the program has for themselves.

As part of the 18^th Annual Lights On Afterschool – a nationwide rally that celebrates the importance of “keeping the lights on” after school – each YouthQuest site will host a special open house event showcasing the fun, hands-on activities they offer on a daily basis.

“Lights On Afterschool brings awareness to programs that benefit youth after school ends for the day,” says LaKeitha Givens, YouthQuest Program Director. “It brings awareness to what YouthQuest does and why.”

YouthQuest serves 2,000 students in grades K-12 in Flint and Genesee County each year. The students are provided not only with academic support and enrichment opportunities, but also with activities to keep them active.

According to Givens, YouthQuest will partner with the Crim Fitness Foundation’s Community Education Initiative to host the events held at Flint Community Schools sites.

Unless otherwise noted, the following sites will host events during program on Oct. 26.

• Brownell and Holmes STEM Academies – 4:30-6:30 p.m.
• Doyle-Ryder Elementary – 4:40-5:40 p.m.
• Durant-Tuuri-Mott Elementary – 5-7 p.m.
• Dye Elementary – 4:40-6:40 p.m.
• Eisenhower Elementary – 4:15-5:15 p.m.
• Freeman Elementary – 4-6 p.m.
• International Academy of Flint – 4:30-6:30 p.m. (Oct. 25)
• Neithercut Elementary – 5-6:45 p.m.
• Northwestern High School – 4-6 p.m.
• Pierce Elementary – 5-6 p.m.
• Potter Elementary – 3:30-5:30 p.m.
• Randels Elementary –  5-7 p.m.
• Southwestern Classical Academy – 3:20-5:20 p.m.

Interested in attending one of the aforementioned events? Contact Dawn Bye at 810-600-1422 or dbye@yquest.org.

To learn more about Lights On Afterschool, which includes nearly 8,000 activities nationwide this year, visit www.afterschoolalliance.org/loa.cfm

YouthQuest is made possible through the generous support of the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation and 21^st Century Community Learning Centers.