Central Park

The Daily Plant : Friday, September 12, 2003

GEARING UP FOR ANOTHER YEAR OF AFTERSCHOOL

All week long, while children throughout the city have been adjusting to their first week of school, Parks & Recreation’s after-school staff has been preparing for their first week of After-School. Although Parks & Recreation’s after-school programming officially begins on Tuesday, September 23, the first day of autumn, some recreation centers are starting classes as soon as Monday. In gearing up for the big day, After-School coordinators and staff have spent the past few days attending training sessions and seminars that cover everything from CPR to Customer Service. They’ve also been interviewing teaching specialists, planning their weekly schedules, and meeting with children and parents who are interested in signing up for a year of after-school fun. Annually, Parks & Recreation educates over 2,500 children through free after-school programming. Its staff is a devoted team of Parks & Recreation employees, teaching specialists, job training participants, community volunteers and students.

This year’s training sessions expands upon Parks & Recreation’s already established After-School Orientation. “We hold day-long and long-term trainings throughout the year, but this year we're trying to concentrate the most essential information up front,” said Julia Schaffer, Central Recreation’s After-School Program Supervisor. This year’s essential information includes training sessions in Parks & Recreation’s After-School curriculum of athletics, arts, and academics, Parks & Recreation’s rules and regulations, Customer Service and Developmental Psychology, as well as instruction in CPR, Responding to Emergencies, and Reporting Child Abuse. Partnerships for Parks also provided additional training in how to conduct Outreach.

Another big part of this week’s training is getting ready for next week’s Registration Fair. From September 15-19, every recreation center will make a special effort to attract new children to After-School programming. Registration tables will be set up so that parents and children can register for after-school programs on the spot. After-School coordinators have already registered several hundred students by reaching out to last year’s participants. “We’re hoping to have a mix of old and new students,” said Donna Algood-Walls, an After-School coordinator from Brooklyn’s Herbert Von King Recreation Center. After-School staff members have also begun to visit local schools and community centers to recruit new after-school participants. “We do whatever it takes to get the word out,” said Manhattan Youth Coordinator Divina Moore.

Perhaps the most important aspect of after-school training is the way that it gets Parks & Recreation staff inspired for another year of teaching. Ruth Mendin, After-School Coordinator in Manhattan’s Recreation Center 59, reported that this year’s crop of teachers are more enthusiastic than ever. “This is going to be our best year. We have two brand new schools sending kids here. So we’re really excited. Most of the parents we’re talking to are also really excited—we have a lot of new programs. This year we’re going to have dance classes, drama classes and a visual arts class.” Ms. Mendin was also pleased to note that some of this year’s volunteers are graduates of After-School. “We have fourteen-year-old kids who have come up through the learn-to-swim and after school programs. They come back to volunteer when they graduate from junior high.” Eddie Vargas, Brooklyn’s Deputy Chief of Recreation,  was also enthusiastic about his staff, saying, “There’s a lot of new blood and a lot of fresh ideas. They’re looking forward to a new year and they seem to really understand the responsibility that comes with teaching. The thing you have to remember is that for some children, after-school is the best part of their day. I tell my staff—you could be the switch in the track for some child—you never know the influence you have over them.”

In his remarks to Parks & Recreation’s after-school staff, Deputy Commissioner Kevin Jeffrey also emphasized the huge impact of Parks & Recreation's after-school programming. "If you do the math you'll see that every child enrolled in after-school programming is receiving 550 hours of instruction from Parks & Recreation staff. We have the potential to make a big difference in these children's lives. One of the big themes of this year's classes is to help children foster high aspirations. Through exposure to arts, athletics and academics, we want kids to get a hint of the things they're capable of achieving.”

On Monday, September 15 the sky above Central Park will be a glow. As part of the 150th anniversary of Central Park, artist Cai Guo-Qiang will present Light Cycle, a pyrotechnic art event. A ring of fire, signifying renewal and wholeness, will illuminate the sky above Central Park for approximately five minutes.

The show begins promptly at 7:45. The best places for New Yorkers to enjoy this spectacular show are the Sheep Meadow, the Great Lawn, and the perimeter of the North Meadow. Light Cycle is curated by Creative Time, presented in conjunction with the City of New York and the Central Park Conservancy, and sponsored by Häagen-Dazs as part of their Art of Pure Pleasure initiative. For more information please call 311, or visit our website at www.nyc.gov/parks or Creative Time at www.creativetime.org.

QUOTATION FOR THE DAY

“A community is like a ship; everyone ought to be prepared to take the helm.”

Henrik Ibsen
(1828-1906)

Know Before You Go

Harlem Meer Center (formerly Lasker Rink)

Harlem Meer Center