WEST AFTER SCHOOL CENTER
NEWS & OPINION

September 2008

Our mission is to provide opportunities that enrich the educational, social, and cultural experiences of students and families in our community.

620 Garfield Avenue, Lancaster, OH  43130  --    740-653-5678  --  740-653-2402 FAX

WASC Before and AfterSchool Programs to Open in Early September

The West After School Center (community-based program serving West Elementary School)

Cedar Community Learning Center (school-based program serving Cedar Hts. Elementary School)

Tallmadge Community Learning Center (school-based program serving Tallmadge Elementary School)

Eastside Center for Success (school-based program serving East Elementary School)

all WASC programs are licensed as before and after school childcare programs by the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services

The West After School Center's 21st CCLC before and after school programs will soon be opening. Those students that receive priority for registration are those recommended by the school principal and teachers based on test scores and classroom performance in reading and math. Additional registrations for our programs at the WASC, Cedar Heights, and Tallmadge are open to all other students for minima payment. Some families may qualify for Title XX childcare care assistance. If you have questions, please call 653-5678 after 10:00 a.m. or email questions to pyoung@westafterschoolcenter.org

September 2-5 - Student-Family Registration and Orientation

September 8-12 - Program Opening and Orientation Week (WASC, Eastside CFS, Cedar CLC)

September 15 - Volunteers join programs - Tallmadge CLC opens

To learn more about a specific site program, contact:

West After School Center - Julie Bibler, Site Administrator - jbibler@westafterschoolcenter.org

Cedar Community Learning Center - Moses Garcia, Site Administrator -  eaglesparrow@earthlink.net

Eastside Center for Success - Rob Libbee, Site Administrator  - rlibbee@eastsidecfs.org

Tallmadge Community Learning Center - Jane Hart, Site Administrator - jhart@westafterschoolcenter.org

Email:  pyoung@westafterschoolcenter.org

Visit us at www.westafterschoolcenter.org

Dr. Paul G. Young, Executive Director

Mrs. Julie Bibler, WASC Site Administrator

Mrs. Jane Hart Tallmadge CLC Site Administrator

Mr.  Moses Garcia, Cedar CLC Site Administrator

Mrs. Chris Kuttler, Office Manager

.

A Typical Daily Schedule at the WASC

6:00 a.m.     Childcare Program Opens (call us to inquire if your child would qualify for

                     JFS childcare reimbursements)

8:30          A.M. Childcare Students Depart for School (until 3:30)

                ELI & Head Start Classes Begin

9:30          Parent/Adult Learning Opportunities (GED), Tuesday & Thursday

11:30        ELI and Head Start Lunch

3:30          P.M. Childcare & 21st CCLC Tutoring Begin

5:30          Supper (free) for students (modest fee for adults)

6:00 p.m.    WASC Childcare Closes      Optional Adult Learning Opportunities (as arranged)

Call 740-653-5678 to learn more about our program offerings, those at Cedar Heights and Tallmadge, and how to register your children.

Eat Better, Do Better

Have you been listening to the clever commercials on the radio sponsored by EatBetterDoBetter.org? If not, tune in and encourage your children to do so as well.

Eating better is all about making good choices. Research shows the kids who do eat well do better is school. That’s the message in the commercials. They focus listeners attention on eating proper amounts of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and proteins — all in moderation.

Help all kids eat better and do better this summer. Get your children involved with our summer lunch program, help them eat better, exercise, and enjoy a summer of good health and happiness—instead of allowing them to become a coach potato and graze from the refrigerator.

Make a Date for Dinner — September 22, 2008

Good food, great conversations and loads of laughs—that’s what family dinners are made of.  If busy schedules are making it hard for your family to pencil in regular family meals, take a “time out” to consider all the benefits of gathering around the dinner table because family dinners are about more than just sharing a meal. 

Did you know that eating dinner frequently with your children reduces their risk of substance abuse?
Research by The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA)* at Columbia University consistently finds that the more often children eat dinner with their families, the less likely they are to smoke, drink or use drugs. The conversations that go hand-in-hand with dinner will help you learn more about your children's lives and better understand the challenges they face.                                                                                                     CASA created Family Day — A Day to Eat Dinner with Your Children™ in 2001, as a national effort to promote family dinners as an effective way to reduce substance abuse among children and teens. Family Day is celebrated on the fourth Monday in September.

Family Day is not just for families. It is a day for all to celebrate, including businesses, unions, religious organizations and community groups. The symbolic act of regular family meals should be promoted and celebrated inside and outside the home throughout the year.

Source:  http://www.casafamilyday.org/

MEAL PROGRAMS

at the WASC

Busy parents can take advantage of the availability of supper at the WASC, Cedar Heights, and Tallmadge, Monday-Friday, throughout the year.  The snacks we serve are free, and the supper  program (5:30-6:00 pm) is open to any child in our programs or others that would sign up for supper, based on qualification requirements similar to the school lunch program. The WASC is a sponsor of after school meals for the centers serving children at East, West, Cedar Heights, and Tallmadge Schools.

Healthy Living for Kids—Season 3

The prevalence of childhood obesity in American society has reached epidemic stages. Lancaster is not immune to the common problems associated with the epidemic. But we can become a model community in how we counteract many of the factors that contribute to excess weight – both for children and adults. In our upcoming Healthy Living for Kids television shows being planned for our third season, the West After School Center intends to lead our community in a campaign that can reverse the current trends. We hope you will join us. Learning to live a healthy lifestyle, eating in moderation and exercising regularly, is best accomplished as a family – and an entire community – rather than alone.

Childhood obesity is related to a number of factors including poor diet, sedentary lifestyle, genetics, and community environment. Citizens of Lancaster are affected by all of them and more. We don’t walk enough, utilize our parks or bike paths as we could, or have adequate access to community-sponsored recreation venues. We need to become more knowledgeable about gardening and what we eat. As a community, we need an active, focused campaign to promote physical activity and healthy food options. We need to learn how to make and celebrate good choices and habits. We think Healthy Living for Kids can become the focal point for that campaign.

With generous grant support from the Fairfield County Foundation, Healthy Living for Kids shows will develop ten shows during Season Three in which children and families from the West After School Center’s after school programs and Lancaster-Fairfield Community Action Head Start will be invited to make up a studio audience. A healthy meal or snack idea will be introduced during each show as well as family exercise ideas for the home. We believe the power of television can be used to teach, model, and celebrate the positive strategies that our community can and must adopt to achieve a healthy lifestyle.

Researchers at the University of Mississippi (1999) found that when both parents are physically active, their children are six times more likely to be physically active. If one parent habitually eats high fat food, the child is twice as likely to be overweight. If both parents eat high fat foods, their children are three to six times more likely to be overweight. The trends haven’t changed in the past decade, and without a doubt, adult awareness and involvement must be increased to help our children develop into healthy adults.

Besides the hands-on educational components of the shows during which we will demonstrate how to make healthy meals, we will help our studio audience members and viewers plan healthy snacks, understand food labels, and create daily balanced diets utilizing the MyPyramid food chart. Moreover, we will invite our viewers to become actively involved in promoting our community dialogue about raising healthy kids. That’s our primary goal – engage every member of our community to talk - every day wherever they are - about healthy living, think each time they eat about making good choices, understand moderation, set a good example, and reach out to help others eat better and do better each day.

We can achieve this goal and lead other communities by our example. This initiative doesn’t involve government intervention. It simply requires our commitment, choice, and continuous dialogue and attention to what we all desire – healthy living for all of our kids!

Watch our Television Show on  the LSN

Channels 6 or 9 digital - Time Warner Cable

New episodes air at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesdays.  Look for our "Student Mentoring Show" playing in September.

FEED OHIO REPORT

This past summer, thanks in large part to grant funding from the Governor’s Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives (GOFCBI) and the Children’s Hunger Alliance and a partnership with Lancaster-Fairfield Community Action Head Start, the West After School Center doubled its summer lunch program to six open serving sites, provided daily enrichment programs, and served approximately 21,000 lunches in 53 days.

                 Our commendations to Julie Bibler, Michael Bibler, Della Maynard, Andrew Kuttler, Jaclyn Elkins, James Gang, Katie Weber, Moses Garcia, Chris Kuttler, Mary George, Jennifer Lape, Alexis Lape, Amy Reed, Cheryl Sullivan, Angela Keller, Jane Hart, Amie Azbell, Wendy Starner, Candace Clark, Stacey Greaves, and our colleagues from the Robert K. Fox Family Y and the Lancaster Fairfield Community Head Start Programs.

Community Care Day

Each September, the United Way of Fairfield County

organizes a community volunteer activity to provide service to non-profit agencies such as the WASC. On September 16, we welcome Chief Bailey and officers from the Lancaster Police Dept. who will help with various improvement projects here at our center.