BERRIEN COUNTY 21^ST CENTURY COMMUNITY LEARNING CENTER AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAM TO BEGIN SEPTEMBER 9^TH

Family Connection/Communities In Schools of Berrien County and the Berrien County Board of Education are proud to be offering afterschool services for Pre-K through eighth grade in Berrien County.  The 21^st Century Community Learning Center(CCLC)program is a federally funded grant initiative to provide quality afterschool instruction and enrichment to children.  Our program will operate at Berrien Primary School(BPS), Berrien Elementary School(BES), and Berrien Middle School(BMS).  We will serve students for three hours a day Monday through Thursday.  Information about the program will be sent home to parents with students soon.  There is limited space in all three programs, but we will do our best to serve as many students as possible.  The program will begin each day with a snack and recreation time. The students will then be offered classroom instruction, homework assistance, and tutoring by certified teachers. The participants will also have opportunitiesto take part in enrichment activities such as art, cooking, drama, and healthy living before being served a nutritious meal.  The program is free of charge to Berrien County students and their families, and transportation to drop-off points across the county will be provided.  Family engagement activities will be offered throughout the year as well.  These events will provide opportunities for families to learn together with their children.  

The 21^st CCLC afterschool program is organized by site coordinators at each school.  Angela Hodge is the site coordinator at the BPS, Heather Nix is at BES, and Debbie Shivley is at BMS.  “This will be my fifth year as the director of the 21^st CCLC program and I have witnessed the incredibly positive impact it has had on our community as a whole and on individual students,” said Constance Thomas, Family Connection/Communities In Schools of Berrien County Executive Director.  “I am so thankful for the wonderful working relationship we have between Family Connection/Communities In Schools of Berrien County and the Berrien County Board of Education.  We are able to do great things for our kids when we work together.”