Giving Compass' Take:

• Andre Perry argues that a voucher program for after-school programs could help underprivileged students access learning and achievement for the long term.

• Is this a viable use of vouchers? How can states work to improve access to after school programs? 

• Learn about a successful after school program. 

At 3 p.m. when most schools let out, some kids will stay back to attend an after-school program, some will be picked up by parents, relatives or paid caregivers to be taken home or to a soccer or swim class, and some others will hang out, on a street corner, or in the playground nearby with friends, or in an empty home.

If you are a working parent with regular office hours, the group that your child belongs to depends on how much you can afford to pay for after-school care.

Unfortunately, the free, public part of education ends when the bell sounds.

Turns out that most of those who can’t afford to pay private school tuition can’t dole out funds for after-school programs either. In 2016, the online education news outlet Chalkbeat reportedthat only 18 percent of children nationally are served by before- and after-school programs. Many have no choice but to leave children in settings that won’t teach them skills that will help them get to college or snag a high-paying job.

The proposed Trump-DeVos FY19 budget would eliminate the program entirely as part of $7.1 billion in suggested cuts to the Department of Education, causing 1.6 million children across the country to lose programs, some free, the funding currently subsidizes. Even if the grant program continues, it’s a drop in the bucket for what states really need to meet the needs of families.

Ironically, the U.S. Education Secretary’s wish of a large, national voucher-based K-12 school program, which she failed to compel legislators from her own party to put into the budget, could ultimately be reintroduced as means to give low-income families after-school options. Because there isn’t a centralized system or district managing after-school programs and care, families need a flexible way to select and pay for services that meet their needs. A voucher system for after-school care makes sense than for K-12 schools.

Read the full article about after-school programs by Andre Perry at The Hechinger Report.