YMCA Partnership with School Districts
The YMCA of Metropolitan Chicago announced they’re providing a new remote learning option to support families and school administrators.
“For parents working from home and for those who are being asked to go back to the office, having to facilitate their children’s remote learning poses a huge challenge,” said the Y in a press release. “To help, the YMCA will provide in-person support for students at most of its Y centers in the city and suburbs, as well as at selected schools that have partnered with the Y.”
District 203
Naperville School District 203 already announced that they’ve partnered with the YMCA to provide childcare services.
“We predicted very early on that our families would need some form of remote learning option this fall,” said Chuck Freundt, Assistant Superintendent of Elementary Schools at Naperville School District 203 in the press release. “That’s why we reached out to the YMCA for assistance. We are confident that they can provide a safe and engaging program for our students and are happy to open up our school buildings for them to do so. I think it will really help parents. This partnership has been super collaborative.”
The district also partnered with Champions. YMCA and Champions staff will be supervising students in District 203 elementary school buildings.
District 204
The YMCA has also partnered with Indian Prairie School District 204 to provide childcare services. More information can be found here.
How it Works
Students will receive in-person support, mentoring, and supervision as they livestream with their teachers and complete independent work assignments. The Y said their counselors will facilitate students’ requirements for five hours of learning and also make time for social, physical, and creative activity during the day.
According to the Y, students will be divided up into cohorts or “pods” of no more than 15 children and one counselor, and the “pods” will remain together for the entire week to limit the risk of cross-infection. The Y will follow the same safety precautions that it has had in place throughout the summer for its Emergency Response Childcare Program for essential workers.
“The goal is to create a safe learning environment where students can get a well-rounded, healthy experience that has been hard to achieve since the pandemic started,” said Richard Malone, President and CEO of YMCA of Metropolitan Chicago in the press release. “It is a lot to ask of working parents to balance job responsibilities and provide for remote learning to their children at the same time. The YMCA is here for families to offer practical support. We are not a replacement for the classroom. We are a support system. We are an organization that has historically reinvented itself time and time again to respond to the changing needs of families and we will do so again now.”
Financial assistance is available also available. Parents are asked to call member services at 773-905-5115 to learn more.
Naperville News 17‘s Aysha Ashley Househ reports.
