Cheney’s Parks and Recreation Department was one of 15 organizations in King, Pierce and Spokane counties recently honored by the Raikes Foundation for providing “high quality out of school time programs to young people as part of its Youth Program Quality Initiative (YPQI).”
Cheney, along with Spokane county organizations Communities in Schools of Spokane County, Odyssey Youth Board and the YMCA of the Inland Northwest, received the foundation’s High Flyer award for “reaching the highest bar of quality” with its service programs for young people ages 10-18, according to an Oct. 28 news release.
Cheney’s parks and recreation supervisor, Kim Best, said former department director Paul Simmons and community obesity prevention coordinator Dané Standish had a lot to do with the city receiving the award, which came as a surprise.
According to the release, the Youth Program Quality Initiative provides up to three years of support for organizations selected through a competitive process. Selected organizations receive a $5,000 grant for participation in the process that includes program assessments, staff training in youth development best practices and onsite coaching and technical assistance.
Best said they used the grant funding and program resources to help with the city’s Youth Commission. Goals and objectives were established for the commission. After a first assessment revealed successes and area of improvements, Best said changes were made that helped lead to the award.
Best said the commission was chosen because it’s one of the department’s smaller youth programs, providing a good platform for learning about the YPQI process. The Raikes Foundation will soon be coming out with a similar initiative for after school programs, which Best said the city intends to utilize as well.
“The goal is to get this into our ECHO program,” she said. The ECHO program provides after school programs for up to 150 kids at three sites, Snowdon and Windsor elementary schools and the department’s headquarters at the Wren Pierson Community Center.
Cheney City Administrator and acting Parks and Recreation Department Director Mark Schuller said the award is an indicator of the quality of programs the city is dedicated to providing for area youth. After school programs not only provide a place for students to work on homework, but also learning experiences.
“This isn’t just daycare that we’re doing,” Schuller said. “They’re being enriched, not just stuck in front of a TV.”
John McCallum can be reached at [email protected].
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