Age range

Website: http://mayor.columbus.gov/

education/capital_kids.asp

Mission/Goals: To provide children with a safe and caring environment in which they learn and play after school, "to promote healthy, positive, youth development" by helping children develop social, academic and interpersonal skills, and to connect family, school and community. Activities include academic assistance, enrichment activities such as cooking, field trips, and art activities, prevention services such as anger management, mediation, violence prevention, and substance abuse prevention, recreational activities, and activities with family members.

Source(s):

http://mayor.columbus.gov/

education/capital_kids.asp

Type of Evaluation: Process and outcome evaluation of Cap City Kids programs and United Way after school programs. The study was funded by the City of Columbus and the United Way of Central Ohio and conducted by College of Social Work, Center for Learning Excellence of the Ohio State University. Data from 24 after school programs in Columbus were aggregated and analyzed. The names of individual programs participating in the study besides Cap City Kids are not available at this time.

Objective: To examine the effectiveness of 24 after school youth development programs in Columbus, Ohio. The process evaluation assessed the qualities of program implementation such as enrollment and program fidelity. The outcome evaluation focused on the effects of the programs on children.

Impact/Outcomes: Data from grade cards suggested that the effects of the program on academic achievement were moderate. At 9 program sites out of 24, 75% of program participants increased or maintained their reading skills. However, at 4 program sites, less than 50% of participants increased or maintained their reading skills. Similarly, 75% of participants increased or maintained their math skills at 8 sites while math grades for more than half of participants dropped during the year at 5 sites. Participation in the program was found to be significantly related to social competence: social competence scores increased as participation in the program increased when the impact of age on social competence was controlled.