Every year, the Center for Afterschool, Summer, and Expanded Learning (CASE) for Kids works to provide resources for out-of-school activities.  When the District J office was contacted by this county-funded and administered program, my staff did not miss a beat in reaching out to our local schools to identify needs. Through these combined efforts, CASE for Kids was able to fund five out-of-school programs, throughout the first half of the year. These programs served a total of 317 students in District J, ranging in age from 4-19 years. 

Sharpstown High School along with City Connections provided services for college readiness classes, leadership workshops, career shadowing, and an outreach effort to freshmen students who are a particularly at-risk.  Sutton Elementary, also in Sharpstown, sponsored a half-day camp with CONNECT YMCA by providing literacy activities, outdoor recreation, art initiatives, STEM classes, and field trips.

Alief ISD was able to use the funds to increase participation in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) classes, sports, college and career readiness.  More importantly, they were able to reach at-risk youth, which included increasing the overall STAAR exam scores of students at Boone, Best, and Horn Elementary schools. 

The Partnership for the Advancement of Immersion of Refugees (PAIR) was able to reach over 150 refugee students at Lee High School through afterschool and summer programs.  The Global Learners Initiative also included field trips and student mentoring. Southwest Schools' Bissonnet Elementary afterschool program in collaboration with City Connections provided funding for literacy, sports, arts and science classes.  

I would like to say thank you to CASE for Kids for all of its hard work this summer. I look forward to working with this organization again in the near future! 

Thank You, 

- Council Member Mike Laster, District J