Why Choose Afterschool Programs?

I'Why should I put my Child in an After School Program?

There are many reasons why you should enroll your child in an after school programs. Please consider all of our reasoning and statistics below.

- All information was acquired from, "The Afterschool Alliance." Visit their website for more information by clicking the button at the bottom of this page.

After School Arrangements:

28% (270,873) of Maryland's K-12 children are responsible for taking care of themselves after school. These children spend an average of 10 hours per week unsupervised.
On average, after school particiapants spend 9 hours a week in after school programs.
This will leave only 1 hour throughout the whole week, that your child is left unsupervised

Satisfaction with and Support for After school Programs:

89% of adults surveyed in Maryland agree that there should be "some type of organized activity or place for children and teens to go after school every day that provides opportunities to learn," and 86% support public funding for after school programs."
81% of Maryland parents are satisfied with the afterschool program their child attends.

Need or Demand for Afterschool:

37% (296,374) of all Maryland children not in afterschool would be likely to participate if an afterschool program were available in the community, regardless of their current care arrangement.
Parents of non-participants believe that their children would benefit most from afterschool programs in the following ways: by having fun, taking advantage of opportunities for community service and learning, staying safe & out of trouble, and receiving academic enrichment.

Barriers to Enrolling in Afterschool Programs:

After lack of need, the predominant obstacles to enrollment include: Cost, preference for alternative activities, transportation, and lack of convenient program location.

A Little More Information:

On average, Maryland families spend $105 per week for afterschool programs.
Afterschool programs ensure that children are in supervised care while their parents are at work:

15.1 million children in the U.S take care of themselves between the time they get home from school and the time there parents get home from work.
Self care is associated with: more accidents and injuries, behavior problems and lower academic achievement.
In households where both parents work or the single parent works, 31 % of children grades K-12 are unsupervised after school.
According to polling, 26 % of these families would likely to use afterschool programs is they were available.

Afterschool programs promote school achievement and build life skills:

Children who spend time in enrichment activities have better grades, better work habits and more positive relationships with their peers.
Afterschool programs give children the opportunity to develop creative thinking, problem-solving, communication and self-direction skills that are linked with success in the work place.
Afterschool programs also benefit the community. On schools days, the peak hours for juvenile crime are between 3 P.M. and 6 P.M.
A survey of California 12-17 year-olds reported that kids left unattended for three or more days a week were twice as likely to hang out with gangs and more than three times likely to use illegal drugs.

Afterschool Alliance