By USDR
Strong participation among students and high satisfaction with afterschool programs among parents have made Hawaii a “Top 10 State for Afterschool,” based on findings from a new household survey commissioned by the Afterschool Alliance.
The “Top 10 States for Afterschool,” from highest to lowest, are California, the District of Columbia, Florida, Vermont, Massachusetts,Arizona, Oregon, Nebraska, Tennessee and Hawaii.
The 2014 edition of America After 3PM also shows that demand for afterschool programs still far exceeds supply, and the number of children in Hawaii who would participate if an afterschool program were available surpasses the number of children in afterschool programs.
The America After 3PM survey included 30,000 American households and 200 in-depth interviews in Hawaii. It found that 26 percent of Hawaii students, 54,184 children in all, are enrolled in afterschool programs, down slightly from 28 percent in 2009, when the survey was last conducted. But 36,474 Hawaii students are still without adult supervision in the afternoons. The parents of 59,057 Hawaiichildren not already in an afterschool program say they would enroll their child if a program were available.
“Hawaii has made great progress creating afterschool opportunities for its children, and can be proud of that,” said Afterschool Alliance Executive Director Jodi Grant. “But there’s no question that more work remains. Most parents in the state who want their child in a program can’t find one that works for them, and that needs to change. Every Hawaii family that needs an afterschool program should have access to one.”
“We have important building blocks for future progress already in place in Hawaii,” said Paula Adams, Program Director, Kahoomiki. “The survey found that 89 percent of parents with children in afterschool programs are satisfied with the program their child attends. Also encouraging is the rock solid support for public funding of afterschool. Ninety-three percent of Hawaii parents in the survey said they support public funding for afterschool programs.”
To determine the state rankings, a composite score was calculated for all 50 states, plus the District of Columbia, and indexed against the national average. Each state’s overall score is based on afterschool program participation, afterschool programs reaching children in need, and parents’ satisfaction with key features of their child’s afterschool program.
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