ALLENTOWN, Pa. — Lt. Gov. Austin Davis joined local lawmakers Friday at the Boys & Girls Club of Allentown to tout an $11.5 million statewide investment in after-school programs.
This new funding was included in the recently passed $47.6 billion state budget; it will be disbursed through the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency.
“This is an example of when Democrats and Republicans come together – we can get stuff done for the good people of Pennsylvania and move this commonwealth forward,” Davis said.
That funding is essential, lawmakers said, because there’s at least 750,000 Pennsylvania children who want to join an after-school program but haven’t been able to, according to waitlists. At least 6,000 after-school programs are available across Pennsylvania.
The new Building Opportunity through Out-of-School Time (BOOST) program will provide these organizations with grants to hire more staff and build capacity to serve more students.
There will be an application process for interested organizations.
The BOOST program is part of Gov. Josh Shapiro and Davis’ comprehensive approach to addressing gun violence, the lieutenant governor said.
“If you fund programs like this, it’s a little bit of money that can go a long way.”State Rep. Mike Schlossberg, D-Lehigh
Davis noted firearms are the top cause of death for young people in America; he also said gun violence is surging in Pennsylvania.
“No matter what they look like or what zip code they live in, every Pennsylvania child deserves the freedom to be safe and feel safe in their community,” Davis said.
After-school programs provide structure for students during the hours of 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. while parents are still working, he added. Those programs also provide students with social skills, homework help and extracurricular activities.
For every $1 invested in these programs, there’s a return of $7, according to Davis.
The proposal for the BOOST program was first developed in 2020 by state Rep. Mike Schlossberg, D-Lehigh, but it took until this year’s budget to get the legislation over the finish line.
Closing a gap
This time around the BOOST program was championed by Schlossberg and state Rep. Elizabeth Fiedler, D-Philadelphia, who also spoke at Friday’s new conference. The program also received support from Davis and state Sen. Lynda Schlegel Culver, R-Columbia/Luzerne/Montour/Northumberland/Snyder.
Before the BOOST program was passed, Pennsylvania was one of only a few states that didn’t have any direct state support for out-of-school time, Schlossberg said, calling it a “huge gap in our system.”
After-school programs are essential for communities with working, multi-generational families, he added.
“If kids don’t have access to programs like this, they’re ultimately going to end up getting lost, [are] less likely to do well in school and more likely to be a victim of violence or a perpetrator of violence,” Schlossberg said. “If you fund programs like this, it’s a little bit of money that can go a long way.”
Others who spoke Friday included: Allentown Mayor Matt Tuerk, state Sen. Nick Miller, D-Lehigh/Northampton, and state Rep. Josh Siegel, D-Lehigh.
The crowd at the news conference was mostly reporters, legislative staff and Allentown children who attend the city's Boys & Girls Club.
Boys & Girls Club of Allentown
Katarah Jordan, CEO of the Boys & Girls Club of Allentown, also spoke Friday before taking legislators on a tour of the Sixth Street Clubhouse.
Jordan said the Allentown program offers students literacy development, mental health support and athletic activities.
"After-school programs are crucial," she said. "They provide students with safe space, a ladder of support that helps them reach their full potential and of course mentors...who show them the power of making good decisions."
Tuerk said after-school programs like those offered at the Boys & Girls Club are “crucial” to supporting the city’s young people, who make up more than 25% of the population — there are more than 33,000 people under the age of 20 in Allentown, Tuerk said.
“We are committed to providing every opportunity for those young people to succeed,” he said.
“We are committed to providing every opportunity for those young people to succeed.”Allentown Mayor Matt Tuerk
Miller said investments like the BOOST program pay off, referencing a Pennsylvania Department of Education report that shows after-school programs increase literacy scores by 31% and math scores by 33% from fall to spring.
“Whether it’s sports programs, art, Boys & Girls Clubs, educational opportunities, we’re going to continue to invest as a General Assembly, working in a bipartisan fashion with the governor [and] lieutenant governor,” Miller said.
He also highlighted another recent $100,000 grant that will be used for improvements in the gym at the Allentown Boys & Girls Club.
Siegel said Pennsylvania legislators have taken a “holistic” approach to supporting children across the state in the past two years through increased education funding and the implementation of a universal free breakfast program.
The BOOST program is another “down payment” on that approach, he said.
“We have made a profound and sustained investment in the nourishment and the support of our children in every way – heart, mind, body, spirit, well-being,” he said.
