The Culver Community School Board received an update on programs offered with the Culver Boys and Girls Club.
Club Director Jessye Gilley said the club started in 2007 with 35 kids a day while today there are 92 students who attend activities as an average daily membership. The total active enrollment is 219. The club welcomes Culver students and many other students in the area to attend the available after school programs.
The club meets at the elementary school from the time school closes until about 7 p.m. ET. Gilley says there are plenty of programs available for elementary aged students.
“They get a snack every day and programming which includes tutoring, homework assistance, technology assistance, games and activities, athletics, individual and national programs that are all run through the Boys and Girls Clubs of America,” explained Gilley.
Gilley hopes that the program can be expanded to include students in the seventh, eighth and ninth grades.
“They can just kind of come and hang out. We would hopefully teach them how to be responsible teens and adult citizens. Initially what we’re looking for is to get them into the building. Our board is discussing that right now because there are a lot of financial keys behind that, but it’s something we’re hoping to do in the future.”
The club doesn’t stop once summer hits. The KidStop program is available which focuses more on childcare. Parents can drop off their children at the elementary school during the week from 6:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. ET and the students will be offered breakfast, lunch and a snack, plus weekly trips to the beach and the library. Educational programming is also provided.
The Culver Boys and Girls Club is the recipient of a $6,000 grant from the Marshall County Community Foundation. The grant will be used to buy 15 new iPads to be placed in the club’s tech room along with a traveling cart with a charging station for the students to use.
Club Board Member Ginny Bess Munroe discussed a leadership entrepreneur club she’s heading that focuses on implementing a business plan and carrying it through with seed money provided by Munroe. Munroe hopes the club will soon be starting their business to focus on providing merchandise for kids in the town park. There are 17 students involved in this program.
The Culver Community School Board commended the efforts of the Culver Boys and Girls Club.
