District, city and library leaders explore collaborative after-school program for 2026-27

The superintendent told the liaison committee the district is pursuing a collaborative after-school program in partnership with the city's parks and recreation and library services, with the goal of keeping programming in-house and using local vendors where possible.

Officials said the district recently ran an RFP and selected a private company, but community feedback favored internal programs that offer arts, STEAM and other activities run by district or city staff. The superintendent described a hybrid model that could rotate services between sites and use shared resources such as a program van to deliver activities.

"The funding that we have and then also some funding that the city has will allow us to maybe create a collaborative that perhaps offers some sort of after school programming as an alternative to us going out to an RFP process and being able to actually create our own hybrid program," the superintendent said.

Key points - The district and city will continue planning over the summer; staff will meet again in July to identify stable funding streams and program logistics. - Target rollout is the 2026-27 school year; leaders said they want a sustainable program that can rotate offerings and use local vendors and district staff where feasible. - Potential program elements discussed included arts, language classes, STEAM, and mobile resources (for example, a van to move programming between sites).

Why it matters: after-school programs can provide academic support and enrichment, and leaders noted the programs can be especially valuable for families where both parents work or where home resources are limited. Committee members urged continued updates and community outreach.

Taper: Committee members and the mayor said they support internal programming and asked staff to return to the liaison committee with concrete proposals and funding details.