[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 148 (2002), Part 15]
[Senate]
[Page 20497]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      LIGHTS ON AFTER SCHOOL! DAY

  Mr. DODD. Mr. President, I rise to recognize today as Lights On After 
School! Day. Lights On After School! is a project of the Afterschool 
Alliance to open the doors of after-school programs around the country 
to neighbors, community leaders, and the media so that everyone 
understands the importance of after-school programs to providing 
children of working parents with a safe place to be until their parents 
are home and providing all children with cultural and academic 
opportunities. Last year, more than 400,000 people participated in 
Lights On After School! events and I hope that even more will 
participate this year.
  I have been a longtime supporter of the 21st Century Community 
Learning Centers program, which provides federal support for local 
after-school centers. For years, I have worked hard, as have many 
others, including Senator Jeffords and Senator Boxer, to increase 
support for these centers. And, with the appropriation having grown 
from $750,000 in fiscal year 1995 to $1 billion in fiscal year 2002, I 
think we've been phenomenally successful. I'm very disappointed that 
the President wants to freeze support for these programs, but I'm 
pleased that the Senate Appropriations Committee's education 
appropriations bill increases funding for fiscal year 2003 by $90 
million. I hope that we can do even better in the end.
  I can think of few programs with as wide-ranging support as these 
centers. Parents, teachers, youth groups, law enforcement, and others 
all recognize that providing extensive, effective after-school programs 
is one of the most important things we can do to support working 
parents and to help our children be safe and reach their potential in 
school and in life.
  As evidence, a survey taken in August by the Afterschool Alliance 
found that nine in ten voters agree that there should be organized 
activities for children and teens after school every day that provide 
opportunities for them to learn.
  By more than two to one, voters disagree with the President's 
proposal to freeze federal funding for after-school programs, and 
sixty-three percent are concerned that existing programs may have to 
reduce their services or close their doors due to lack of increased 
funding.
  More than nine in ten voters who have children in after-school 
programs believe that their children are safer and less likely to be 
involved in juvenile crime than children who aren't in after-school 
programs.
  Finally, 92 percent of these parents say their children do better in 
reading, writing and math because of after-school programs, and 87 
percent say that their children are less likely to use alcohol and 
drugs because of after-school programs.
  I thank the Afterschool Alliance for all their work, and urge my 
colleagues to join me in commemorating Lights On After School!
  Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, I would like to take this opportunity to 
discuss an issue of great importance to our Nation's children: 
afterschool programs. Children are much more likely to be involved in 
crime, substance abuse, and teenage pregnancy in the hours after 
school. In fact, about 10 percent of violent juvenile crimes are 
committed between 3 p.m. and 4 p.m. alone. The Urban Institute 
estimates that at least 7 million and as many as 15 million ``latchkey 
kids'' go to an empty house on any given afternoon. These children need 
a place to go--an empty house should not be an option.
  It is essential that we provide children with organized activities or 
programs to go to during the critical afterschool hours. According to 
the Departments of Education and Health and Human Services, 
extracurricular activities like those provided by afterschool programs 
have proven to reduce the number of students likely to use drugs by 50 
percent and the number of students likely to become teen parents by 33 
percent. Furthermore, studies have shown that students who participate 
in extracurricular activities have better grades, feel greater 
attachment to school, have lower truancy rates and reach higher levels 
of achievement in college.
  We have made great progress in the last 5 years toward making these 
kinds of programs more widely available. Through the 21st Century 
Community Learning Center Program, federal support for local 
afterschool programs increased from $1 million in fiscal year 1997 to 
$1 billion in fiscal year 2002. As a result, over 900 communities 
across the Nation are now providing their children with a positive 
alternative to unsupervised care. In addition, Senator Ensign and I 
offered an amendment to the Leave No Child Behind Act to increase 
funding for afterschool programs. As enacted, the bill will raise 
afterschool funding to $2.5 billion by the year 2007.
  To highlight the growing need for afterschool programs, the 
Afterschool Alliance--a nonprofit organization dedicated to ensuring 
that all children and youth have access to quality, affordable 
afterschool programs by the year 2010--has announced the third annual 
nationwide day of awareness for afterschool programs called ``Lights On 
After School!.'' Today, schools, community centers, museums, libraries, 
and parks across America will host activities to inform families about 
the places currently open to children after school and the need to 
provide additional centers where children can participate in engaging, 
stimulating activities until their parents return from work.
  I applaud the Afterschool Alliance for recognizing the important role 
of afterschool programs in the lives of children, families, and 
communities, and I enthusiastically support the effort to build 
awareness through ``Lights On After School!.'' Promoting the safety and 
well-being of our children is the best way to ensure that they have a 
genuine opportunity to succeed.

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