Over two hundred parents, supporters, and community members celebrated the annual event.
The Colorado Afterschool Partnership (CAP) and hundreds of students, families, and staff from Adams 12 Five Star Schools celebrated and rallied for afterschool programs at the Colorado State Capitol for the 23rd annual Lights On Afterschool!
The celebration was part of the Afterschool Alliance’s nationwide event on Thursday, October 20, 2022, that called attention to the importance of afterschool programs and the resources required to keep the lights on and the doors open, especially as programs are doing vital work to help students recover academically and socially from the pandemic.
“Afterschool programs provide safe, challenging, and engaging learning experiences that help children develop social, emotional, physical, and academic skills,” Megan Nyce, CAP Network Lead, said during the event. “Afterschool programs also support working families by ensuring their children are safe and productive after the regular school day ends.
“82% of parents that participated in the Afterschool Alliance America After 3p study said afterschool help the keep their jobs.”
The Colorado State Capitol was lit in yellow as a celebratory gesture and luminary bags decorated by afterschool students from across Metro Denver dotted the capitol’s west steps. It was one of the thousands of events across America that highlighted the need for additional support for afterschool programs as they support students while facing funding and staffing challenges.
“Afterschool programs across the country are facing funding shortfalls so severe that they are being forced to close their doors and turn off their lights,” Nyce said. “It is time for Colorado to invest in afterschool. We have achieved kindergarten for all, Pre-K for all, and now it’s time for Afterschool for All.”
Established in October 2014, CAP is one of fifty statewide afterschool networks that comprise the National Network of Statewide Afterschool Networks. CAP works to foster statewide partnerships that improve outcomes for all children and youth through high-quality expanded learning opportunities like those found in afterschool and summer programs. For more information about CAP, visit www.coloradoafterschoolpartnership.org.
The Afterschool Alliance is a nonprofit public awareness and advocacy organization working to ensure that all children have access to quality afterschool programs. More information about Lights On Afterschool is available at www.afterschoolalliance.org.
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