Ohio University Kids on Campus awarded three new grants totaling $2.5 million

Thanks to Nita M. Lowey 21st Century Community Learning Center grants administered by the Ohio Department of Education, $2.5 million in total, Kids on Campus will continue to offer its services to school districts in Southeast Ohio.

“Kids on Campus is about partnerships, students, and the future,” said College of Health Sciences and Professions Dean John McCarthy. “I am so proud of the team on campus and their ability to work so well with the community to meet their needs.”

The federally funded grant program supports high-quality, out-of-school learning opportunities and related activities for students who attend eligible schools.

“We are very grateful to have worked with our local schools to write competitive grant applications for afterschool programming. We are very pleased to announce that this effort resulted in three new awards and four continuing awards from the Ohio Department of Education,” said Jo Ellen Sherow, program manager of Kids on Campus. “These grants will serve children in five local school districts (Belpre City, Eastern Local, Federal Hocking Local, Nelsonville-York City and Southern Local Perry County) in the coming years. We are extremely excited about our new grant with Nelsonville-York City Schools.  We will be able to offer our program to 6th through 12th grade students in this district over the next five years.”

Kids on Campus is based in Ohio University’s College of Health Sciences and Professions and is a rural community-university partnership serving the underserved in Southeast Ohio including at-risk children. Programming for Kids on Campus is completely funded by donations and grants. Through grants from the Ohio Department of Education, Kids on Campus will receive nearly $1.7 million this year alone.

Each 21st Century grant is worth $850,000 over a five-year period. The following programs benefit from the fund:

• Belpre Elementary School (applied for in partnership with Belpre City Schools) – Will serve approximately 75 K-6 students during afterschool and summer programs.
• Belpre High School (applied for in partnership with Belpre City Schools) – Will serve approximately 60 students in grades 7-12 during afterschool and summer programs.
• Eastern High School (applied for in partnership with Eastern Local Schools) – Will serve approximately 70 students in grades 7 – 12 during afterschool and summer programs.
• Federal Hocking Secondary School (applied for in partnership with Federal Hocking Local Schools) — Will serve approximately 50 students in grades 6-12 during afterschool and summer programs.
• Millcreek Elementary School (applied for in partnership with Southern Local Schools) — Will serve approximately 80 students in grades K-6 during before school, afterschool and summer programs.
• Nelsonville-York Elementary School (applied for in partnership with Nelsonville-York City Schools) – Will serve approximately 75 students in grades K – 5 during before, afterschool and summer programs.
• Nelsonville-York High School (applied for in partnership with Nelsonville-York City Schools) - Will serve approximately 60 students in grades 6 – 12 during afterschool and summer programs.

In addition, Kids on Campus in partnership with Athens City Schools received a separate Summer Learning and Afterschool Opportunities Grant from the Ohio Department of Education that will support afterschool programs at The Plains Intermediate School again this year.

Kids on Campus employs approximately 200 people each year from Ohio University and surrounding communities including high school and college students, teachers, bus drivers and community members while also partnering with more than 100 area agencies and university departments.