After School – East African Community Services

K-12 After School Program

Jaawahir Omar, M.Ed, Programs Director

K-12 Afterschool Programs

East African culturally centered Out-of-School-Time (OST) programming

Culturally competent Afterschool Programs to honor and preserve values and traditions. designed for Elementary (K-4) and Middle School (5-8). The EACS Model encourages academic performance, healthy self-esteem and self-image, leadership, and college/career exploration.  Our programs at EACS are focused on youth and education.

The Need: Current EACS educational programming includes after school programs as well as summer programs for K – 12^th. EACS developed those programs to meet the needs of students. A – comprehensive mentorship adapted for multicultural youth in our community. Children in middle and high school face unique challenges developmentally as they grapple with adolescence.

The East African Youth face additional challenges adapting their culture and values into the social and developmental fabric of the United States as immigrant children and children of immigrants and refugee community. East African youth have higher criminal and high school dropout rates in the king county area. Middle school, however, offers a tremendous opportunity to mentor and transform students for powerful outcomes.

Core Program Objectives

EACS creates an environment to challenge and support students through academic and social emotional learning 
Educators will partner with employers, universities, colleges and other organizations to present diverse career options and pathways to our students 
Educators assess student progress through assessments to measure student’s academic progress 
EACS provides culturally responsive learning, creating a space where the students see their identities represented  
Provides students with opportunities to hone leaderships skills, through annual team projects.

95% of first time-enrolled K-8 students will report higher levels of East African cultural identity, appreciation for Blackness and self-esteem by the 50% mark of the quarter of enrollment.
85% of students will improve their math assessment scores (Headline Indicator: 4th graders who meet math standards) 
85% of students will improve their reading assessment scores (Headline Indicator: 3rd graders who meet reading standards) 
85% of program youth identified with behavioral challenges will indicate progress (EACS Instructor, SPS local teacher, and family reports)
K-12 Year-Round Socioemotional and Core-Subject Development Goals

K-12 Afterschool program is offered at free or discounted cost to Seattle Housing Authority youth and any other families that lack of ability to pay, alleviating financial barriers that could prevent participation in other programs. We alleviate challenges of added transportation costs by providing youth programming in the neighborhoods where our families live.

Target Communities

Our primary focus is addressing the needs of under-served East African youth, specifically children of refugees. More than 80% of the youth in our program are Somali, 13% are Ethiopian, and 4% are Eritrean/Somali. Approximately 85% of the youth in our program are Muslim. 76% of youth participants we serve are low-income as represented Free and Reduced-Price Lunch eligibility. Languages spoken at home include Somali, Amharic, Tigrinya, Oromo, and Afar. A vast majority of East African families living in Seattle originally came to the city as refugees. 20% of our students are refugees who were born abroad and 80% of our students are the children of East African refugees. 

Service Delivery

Programming is offered five days per week for the entire school year, from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

K – 5th: Heroes

EACS creates an environment to challenge and support students through academic and social emotional learning 
Educators will partner with employers, universities, colleges and other organizations to present diverse career options and pathways to our students 
Educators assess student progress through assessments to measure student’s academic progress 
EACS provides culturally responsive learning, creating a space where the students see their identities represented  
Provides students with opportunities to hone leaderships skills, through annual team projects.

6- 8th: Scholars

Provide opportunities that offer tools and strategies for youth to explore their directions in their academic and personal growth
Support with youth’s success in middle school math (Algebra). Students will be ready to take Algebra by 8^th
Support youth’s success in their middle school reading and comprehension (At appropriate reading level)
Provide opportunities for all youth to sign up for college bound scholarships.
Introduce activities and opportunities for youth to explore the S.T.E.M activities/field
Provide 8^th graders the necessary strategies, tools, and mentorship to transition to high school.

9th – 12th: Leaders

All youths will attend and receive High School Diploma
Youths will explore their personal achievements through community service and advocacy. Learning organizing and different strategies by volunteering hours.
Youths will be provided activities and opportunities to explore their personal purpose either in academia and or trade schools.
Youths will be provided opportunities to learn, develop, and implement their leadership skills.
Youths will be given the chance to learn different things pertaining to self-awareness, building community leadership, and accountability.
Youth will be provided strategies, tools, and support to transition to college, vocational school, and or career.

Closing the Achievement & Opportunity Gap

Provide youth with more time and more opportunities.
By the time youth reach 6th grade, students from middle and upper-income families have likely spent 6,000 hours more learning than their lower-income peers
The critical gap in education isn’t an “achievement gap” as the media often describes it, but an opportunity gap.

Parental income has become one of the most powerful predictors of student achievement.