A Brooklyn elementary school is experimenting with a novel idea to ease the burden of childcare on working parents by offering 12-hour school days — and it’s become a hit for parents, students, and teachers alike.
Brooklyn Charter School, located in the heart of Bed-Stuy, opens bright and early at 7 a.m. and lets students stay up until 7 p.m., all free of charge and with extra meals provided.
The standard school day at Brooklyn Charter begins at 8:30 a.m. and goes through 4 p.m., making the extended schedule a godsend for many parents juggling their own work schedules with the burden — and cost — of child care.
“It helps a lot,” said parent Lenge Winfield, whose 10-year-old stays until 6:45 p.m..
“This is a convenience for me being that I don’t have to pay anything,” Winfield told The Post. “Rent increase in these last five years, it’s crazy — even if you are living in the most poverty-stricken area you pay $2,500. So any dollar you don’t have to give for education or after school program is definitely helpful. They are getting quality care.”
The school rolled out the extended day in September, in an effort to stem a steady decline and enrollment, administrators said.
“We needed to understand what was happening in our community,” principal Joanne Hunt said. “We found a lot of families were leaving because they couldn’t afford to be in the city and they also needed childcare, and quality childcare.
“Not all work in families or traditional 9-to-5. Even if you are, if you get off at 5, you have to pick up your child by 6. What programs are available at that time?”
Since starting the program, enrollment has climbed by nearly 100 students, Hunt said.
The notion of keeping elementary-aged kids in class for such a stretch may sound grueling, but the school said the after-hours programs include arts and crafts, drumming, dance and coding lessons. Full dinner is also offered.
Staff who choose to work the program get paid extra on top of their normal school day pay, with rates varying based on an employee’s level of educational experience and expertise. Hunt stressed that the program only employs educators — teachers, specialists, and counselors.
Funding for the school and other charters in the city comes from a combination of Department of Education funds — $18,340 per student enrolled for a full school year — federal funds for low-income families, and private donations from board members, grants and grassroots gifts.
The majority of the funding for the extended day comes from public funding, Hunt said, but exact amounts aren’t available yet.
Kids also gave the extended day a thumbs up.
“The school is good. I like it. I like the gym, I like the dance, I like everything,” 8-year-old Kyle Thomas-Morrison told The Post.
“I like it. I’m happy to be here,” said his smiling 6-year-old sister, Janae.
Their grandmother, Yvette Jones, said the kids are bounding out of the house each morning to get to school early.
“You see the energy they have coming in here,” said the grandmother. “I have no problem at all getting them up.
“Academically, they are doing better,” she said. “It occupies their brains in different ways. It occupies their mind.”
The teachers who help out agree, and are proud to pitch in.
“I believe it’s benefitting the kids because it’s giving them extracurriculars to do after school,” said Kiara Wilson, who puts in nearly 12 hours herself teaching kindergarten by day and watching over fourth graders by evening.
“It’s keeping them occupied and not idling on the playground, or not idling at home on tablets.”
Parent Ebony Reynolds, a home health aide with a 5-year-old son at the school, said the extra time eased her mind that her child isn’t idle.
“I’m at peace knowing he’s here,” she said.
Winfield said it keeps students out of trouble.
“These hours are the most crucial for the kids when they get out of school, because when I get out here people are smoking weed, I see people rolling up crack,” said Winfield, gesturing to the surrounding corners.
“The influence is right there as they get out. Imagine if the parents are not right there to pick them up?”
