Program areas at SHAPE Community Center
The Family Strengthening & Empowerment Programs include the After School Enrichment Program (ASEP) serves children 5-15 years of age (kindergarten-ninth grade) and their parents, primarily single parents and extremely low-income families. ASEP promotes academic and life choice success through homework assistance and tutorial study, life skills, and cultural sharing experiences for students during the school year. In addition, parent support group meetings are held biweekly on Wednesdays, with 100% participation, to address parenting skills issues, challenges, strategies, and family strengthening and empowerment. See Schedule O.The annual Summer Enrichment Program (SEP) conducts an 8-week, full-day program for children and youth with emotional learning, meditation, physical activities, arts and crafts, language, history, financial literacy, academics, and weekly parent support group meetings. ASEP programs operate on average for 38 weeks of the year, serving 45 youth and 30 parents during the school year and SEP 95 youth and 65 parents during the eight weeks of summer sessions.
Community Assistance: received financial assistance to provide parents of the youth program with rental assistance.
Community Programs & Activities include the following: 1) youth & adult computer classes, 2) legal assistance clinics, 3) adult education classes and employment assistance, 4) weekly HIV/AIDS education classes, 5) elders Institute of Wisdom meetings (twice a week), 6) annual Pan African Cultural Festival, 8) annual Kwanzaa celebrations and 10) forums for community issues such as tobacco prevention, voter registration and mobilization, and other issues. These programs and activities educate community members on healthy lifestyles and issues of importance to strengthening the community to support our philosophy to foster a "Strong Family; Strong Nation." SHAPE directly serves over 7,500 people annually and impacts significantly more through these programs and activities.