By Connie Leinbach
Hyde Schools has lost its federal grant for Hyde 21st Century Community Learning Center (CCLC), which since 2010 funded after-school programs and other community enrichment, all free for Hyde County families.
The after-school program served around 200 students county-wide, offering academic support and enrichment in S.T.E.M, arts, social emotional learning, and health and wellness. In the 2023-24 school year alone, the program featured Skills USA, Soccer, Cooking, Sewing, Radio Broadcasting, Science Olympiad, Quiz Bowl, Photography, Music, Film, Dance, Wool Felting, Cheer, Battle of the Books and AIG Talent Development, Hyde County schools said in a press release.
Hyde’s program also has been honored at the national level for its excellence and impact.
Hyde lost out because the grant priority process was given to organizations and schools that have never run a 21st Century program before, the press release said.
“We were fortunate to have it for so long,” said Ocracoke School Principal Jeanie Owens in an interview, noting that the program primarily served elementary students. “Our first priority is ensuring our Friday afternoon early releases are covered for parents needing childcare.”
She said the school will have a Friday Afternoon Kids’ Club for students in grades K-8 beginning at 11:30 am (the Friday dismissal time) and ending at 3 p.m.
This club will focus on tutoring, enrichment, and fun activities for students and will be run by Teaching Assistants Jessica Bennink Howard, Stacey O’Neal and Yessenia Trejo Contreras.
High School students will be encouraged to serve as volunteers during Friday Kids’ Club, earning community service hours.
In the meantime, Owens will research how to meet the “needs of our parents and students in a way that fits our abilities as a school and as a district.”
Because the CCLC paid for tutors, they won’t be available, but the school also will restructure homework, she said.
Moreover, the new weekly schedule, consisting of 4 ½ student days and teacher meetings only on Fridays, will give teachers more time after school Monday to Thursday to help students.
“We are committed to maintaining the high-quality student enrichment programs started by the 21st Century program, including our beloved cheerleading squad, Quiz Bowl teams, and resources for Battle of the Books (to name a few),” Owens said in a statement. “We have a very dedicated and energetic staff who will make sure that our students do not miss out on any of the opportunities they had in the past.”
“While this is a challenging time for our afterschool program, we remain dedicated to exploring alternative funding sources and partnerships to provide valuable after school activities for our students in the future,” Dr. Melanie Shaver, superintendent, said in the Hyde Schools release said.
The 21st Century program was under the direction of Nancy Leach, the director of student services for Hyde County Schools. She coordinates a myriad of services relating to the physical and mental health of the students, district scholarships, juvenile crime prevention, Title IX, memorandums of understanding with school/community partners and other grants.
In 2022, Leach was one of four professionals in the state who received the Emerging Afterschool Champion Award by the North Carolina Center for Afterschool Programs.
Leach told the Observer that a number of long-standing 21st Century programs lost funding this go-round.
She also said that she’s scheduled to present a talk at the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction in Greensboro next week about Hyde’s program.
“When they told me about losing funding, they asked if I could still present,” she said. “So, I created a 45-minute presentation titled ‘Building Enrichment Opportunities for Success.’”
