Houston Endowment, Inc. grant funds after-school programs in 2010

The Cooperative for after-School Enrichment, or CASE, was awarded a $1.1 million grant by Houston Endowment for 2010 to support local after-school programs in greater Harris County. CASE is a division of Harris County Department of Education and provides after-school programs for about 10,000 youth in grades pre-k through 12 in greater Harris County.

“These funds help us further our mission to strengthen, support and sustain after-school programs in our community. These new funds will allow CASE to expand services to local after-school programs in 2010,” said Lisa Caruthers, CASE director. “This funding helps us leverage government dollars we receive to support model after-school programming in greater Houston. After-school programs allow students to have fun, receive academic enrichment, improve physical activity and explore future career options.”

CASE serves about 100 after-school venues throughout the county, including schools, churches and community centers. As an intermediary, CASE provides a variety of programs and resources for the after-school community including technical assistance, curriculum-based programming and funding.

Funds from Houston Endowment allow CASE to offer support to after-school providers through the CASE After-School Initiative competitive grant process. The process allows small to mid-size nonprofit schools and community-based organizations the opportunity to gain $2,000-$25,000 one-time grants to maximize their after-school programs.

In addition, the $1.1 million grant places 60 CASE AmeriCorps members in after-school programs throughout the county during the year. The members are trained in after-school best practices. AmeriCorps members provide hands-on support with CASE Kids’ Day curriculum. Lessons allow students to enhance skills in critical subjects like science, math and technology while exploring career opportunities in fun venues.

“CASE also uses grant funding to train after-school vendors and providers to align their services with academic standards to meet the needs of regular school-day instruction,” Caruthers explained. “We strive to improve the quality of services offered after school. Training empowers our vendors to deliver the very best instruction to our students.”

For more information about the grant resources, including program funding and training, access CASE at www.hcde-texas.org or call (713) 696-1360.

Current facts about after-school in Texas (provided by Afterschool Alliance):

25 percent of Texas students in K-12 take care of themselves after school
15 percent participate in after-school programs
74 percent spend some portion of the hours after school in care of a parent or guardian
Other care arrangements include child care centers (12 percent); sibling care (15 percent) and non-parental adult care such as grandparent, neighbor (37 percent)
51 percent of Texas children not in after-school programs would likely participate if programs were available

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