Activities advocated
for teens after classAiona and legislators
want middle-school
youths to avoid drugs
When the public school day ends, many elementary students head to A-Plus programs while high school students plunge into sports or clubs. But middle school students are often left to their own devices, which can be dangerous.
A push to provide after-school activities for intermediate students appears to be gaining ground, winning the backing of Lt. Gov. James "Duke" Aiona and legislators as a way to keep kids from falling into drug use.
"Middle school is the only area where we don't have anything right now," Aiona said. "That's a very vulnerable time. Idle time is a risk factor, and getting kids involved in activities can help."
Aiona said he is pushing to include funding in the executive budget for after-school programs, from sports to drama, for middle school students.
Sen. Suzanne Chun Oakland (D, Kalihi-Liliha), chair of the Health Committee, said such funding will be a top priority for the "Keiki Caucus," which focuses on children's issues, during the legislative session that starts next month.
"It has such multiple positives," she said. "It helps prevent substance abuse, promotes healthy living, improves academic performance and reduces teenage pregnancy. Plus it helps children explore their interests."
A bill that would have used tobacco settlement money to fund such activities got strong support last year in the House and Senate, but conference committee members disagreed over funding and it was held over until this session.
Chun Oakland, a sponsor of the bill, said general funds should be used for the effort, if not the tobacco settlement.
"Our economy is improving," Chun Oakland said. "Our children should be able to benefit from the economic upswing too."
In its original form, Senate Bill 945 would have given $3 million a year to the Department of Education for nonschool-hour activities for sixth- through eighth-graders and $3 million to the Office of Youth Services to give to nonprofit community organizations for such programs. Another $3 million was earmarked for the county departments of parks and recreation.
Aiona said he didn't have any particular bill in mind and was not eyeing tobacco settlement money. His proposal to fund after-school activities for intermediate students emerged from the Drug Control Summit in September.
"Making it available will fill a big gap and fill a big need," he said. "I don't believe there's going to be much opposition. At least I haven't heard any major opposition to it."
Students in private intermediate schools can participate in almost as many sports as those in high school through the Interscholastic League of Honolulu, but public school students have few options unless their parents can afford them.
"That's where I think we lose our kids to the streets," said Roy Miyoga, Aiea High School athletic director. "We have to create something like that in the middle school, to keep them off the streets and get them interested early."
Miyoga and a few high school athletic directors volunteer their time to coordinate some sports for middle schools in their areas, but it is in addition to their full-time jobs. He recommended hiring one full-time middle-school coordinator for each of the Department of Education's seven districts.
The Coalition for a Drug-Free Hawaii pushed hard for Senate Bill 945 last year, and program director Cheryl Kameoka said she was heartened by the administration's interest in after-school activities. Students in middle school tend to break away from their parents and need other adult role models, she said.
"We're hoping because the lieutenant governor is a coach and he volunteers for after-school activities, that he would know some of the benefits," she said. (Aiona is an assistant varsity basketball coach at Saint Louis High School.)
To win support from middle schools, programs will need to be self-sufficient, and not add to the workload of administrators and teachers, who already feel burdened by new federal academic requirements.
"If you had an organization that will do this, that's great," said Annette Nishikawa, principal of Kapolei Middle School, who often puts in 11-hour days on campus. "But if you say, here it is, go do it, I'm really hesitant."
She noted that extracurricular activities require planning, personnel and facilities, as well as transport home for students who rely on school buses. Her teachers already volunteer to tutor students after school, she said, and need time for their own families, too.
"If our No. 1 priority is education, then that is what we have to concentrate on, the academics and the support for these children during school hours," she said. "It's a really good idea to keep these kids busy after school, but I'm hesitant until I see the whole package."