News Release

01/29/2007
PPL Launches Seven PASA After-school Initiatives throughout the City

Community partnerships key to developing and providing these programs

From the North End to the East Side, from the West End to Olneyville and the Lower South Providence AfterZones, City middle-school children are participating in seven Providence After School Alliance (PASA) programs just launched this month at Providence Public Library (PPL) locations. In all, there are five separate initiatives involving PPL staff and other community groups or organizations.

Providence After School Alliance (PASA), an initiative of The Education Partnership, is a public-private partnership led by Mayor David Cicilline with the goal of creating a system of out-of-school time learning opportunities for all of Providence’s children and families. PPL is a PASA partner organization.

One of the new PASA initiatives, Bites & Bytes, is serving as a model for a newly-launched national program – Fit for Life – sponsored by MetLife Foundation and Libraries for the Future, the program division of the Americans for Libraries Council (with a $18,000 grant). Fit for Life is a library-based program for teens and their families that promotes physical fitness and healthy eating. PPL is one of only 12 libraries this year modeling the new Fit for Life program.

PPL will work with several partners to implement the Bites & Bytes/ Fit for Life program, including Johnson & Wales University, Kid’s First and Whole Foods Market. Through the program, the Library will promote and expand its health and wellness materials including books, databases (some in Spanish) and websites; provide ongoing health, fitness and nutrition information for youth through a hands-on project; offer family workshops and field visits; and promote awareness community-wide of healthy eating habits.

Similarly, the new ZooMuLi program is another example of an innovative community educational partnership. PPL will partner with Roger Williams Park and Zoo and the Museum of Natural History, sharing programs and activities at each site over 12 weeks, in order to introduce youth to a sense of place and respect for the natural environment.

“Providence Public Library has been and continues to be one of PASA’s very committed private partners, dedicated to our mission and goals of providing safe, engaging youth enrichment and learning opportunities in all our AfterZones. PPL is both a creator and provider of innovative, quality programs and a wealth of resources at the heart of each of our five AfterZones,” said Hillary Salmons, Director of PASA.” She also noted that PPL has been awarded $23,000 this year in grants by PASA with funds contributed by The Wallace Foundation and Bank of America.

“PPL has a proven track record as a provider of quality after-school experiences for Providence’s school children. In 2001, PPL became just the second urban library to receive the IMLS National Award for Library Service in recognition of our innovative programs that target and provide for the needs of the people we serve,” said Dale Thompson, Library Director.

“We see our involvement with PASA as critical to our continuing evolution as a partner with the City and other community organizations on our shared mission to improve and increase quality after-school opportunities for the children and youth of Providence,” said Thompson.

PASA programs kicked off this month at libraries

LOWER SOUTH PROVIDENCE AFTERZONE
Bites & Bytes ~ Wednesday, 3 – 5 pm
South Providence Branch Library, 441 Prairie Avenue

A combination of nutrition/healthy eating information and web searching for reliable youth-oriented health and wellness sites. Johnson & Wales will provide five hands-on sessions on healthy eating/snacking (featuring different cuisines each week), Whole Foods Market will provide one hands-on cooking demonstration, Kids First will do two interactive movement sessions, and the Library will conduct three sessions focused on making a book of family recipes and locating information on health and wellness. There will also be one family field trip.

Contacts: Candice Haster chaster@provlib.org 455-8158 or 646-675-1451 & Erica Wilder ewilder@provlib.org 455-8037

NORTH END AFTERZONE
Read & Rap: Youth Poets ~ Thursday, 3:30 - 5 pm
Smith Hill Branch Library, 31 Candace Street

If you can rap, you can write! Poetry is for everyone!! Express yourself! Exploring poetry in all its various styles, including rap, kids spend six weeks working with local published poets and five weeks making their own poetry/rap book. There’ll be an evening celebration of all the young writers. A few students will have their poems published on the back of RIPTA buses!

Contacts: Jennifer Romans jromans@provlib.org 455-8104 & Candice Haster chaster@provlib.org 455-8158 or 646-675-1451

Bites & Bytes ~ Tuesday, 3:30 – 5 pm
Smith Hill Branch Library, 31 Candace Street
(See program description above)

J&W-led cooking demos on location at Smith Hill Branch Library (March 6, 13, 20, 27)

EAST SIDE AFTERZONE
ArtStars! ~ Wednesday, 3:30 – 5:30 pm
Rochambeau Branch Library, 708 Hope Street

ArtStars will explore a variety of art making techniques and how artists of the past used them. They will create a textile mural for permanent display at the Rochambeau Library and use their new skills to design their own final project to be displayed and celebrated at the ArtStars Gallery Night!

Sarah Weed sweed@provlib.org 455-8110

WEST END AFTERZONE
ZooMuLi Investigators ~ Tuesday & Thursday, 3:30 – 5:30 pm
Knight Memorial Library, 275 Elmwood Ave.

Students will explore where they live – past, present and future. They will spend three sessions at the Museum of Natural History, four sessions at the Roger Williams Park Zoo, and four at the Library. They will complete a final community learning project based on their own interests in what they have seen, heard and learned over the weeks.

Contacts: Candice Haster chaster@provlib.org 455-8158 or 646-675-1451 & Jane Tonn jtonn@provlib.org & Cheryl Space cspace@provlib.org 455-8042.

Manga Mania – Anime Book Club ~ Wednesday, 4 – 5:30 pm
Knight Memorial Library, 275 Elmwood Avenue

The Anime Book Club will explore the Anime and Manga phenomenon, a Japanese-style graphic novel. Students will have an opportunity to make new friends, share and discuss their favorites and create their own Mangas, all while learning about the Japanese culture and language.

Contact: Soran Pan span@provlib.org

OLNEYVILLE AFTERZONE
ZooMuLi Investigators ~ Thursday, 3:30 – 5:30 pm
Olneyville Branch Library, One Olneyville Sq.
(See program description above)