After School Matters in Chicago

The Foundation's program, After School: Connecting Children at Risk With Responsible Adults to Help Reduce Youth Substance Abuse and Other Health-Compromising Behaviors, was designed to support a three-city demonstration project designed to connect at-risk urban youth with responsible adults in activities after school. This grant will support After School Matters in developing the program, financing, and organizational capacity to provide youth with quality opportunities by pursuing three strategies: (1) expanding high quality out-of-school opportunities that build relationships with competent, caring adults, engage youth in meaningful activities, and enable them to learn and apply skills relevant to education, employment, and civic life; (2) promoting a neighborhood-based approach that maximizes use of existing physical and programmatic resources and that brings adults and youth together to create places of safety and connection; and (3) enlisting key sectors--government, youth-serving organizations, businesses, philanthropy, and others--to increase their contributions to creating a sustainable infrastructure of opportunities for young people in the out-of-school hours. Building on the overwhelming success and "brand" recognition among youth of Chicago's Gallery 37, an arts apprenticeship program initiated in 1991, After School Matters will initially focus on expanding opportunities for 13- to 18-year olds in three areas: the arts ("Gallery 37"), technology ("Tech 37"), and sports ("Sports 37). In all of its programs, After School Matters will encourage young people to develop a "resume of achievement" for use in seeking jobs and/or educational advancement. The program will also seek to provide some form of compensation to young people, through school credits, stipends, or scholarships.

Grant Details

Amount Awarded $5,000,000.00

Awarded on: 4/25/2001

Time frame: 5/1/2001 - 4/30/2006

Grant Number: 42015