The Children Are Our Future
About Us - Past, Present and Future
The mission of the Center is multi-faceted in that it not only supports the mental/intellectual, and psychological growth of its children but it also provides a stable moral and social resource structure as well. The teachers and assistants relate to each child holistically, addressing academics by offering instruction in reading, writing, mathematics, homework assignments, study skills (teaching them not only what to study but how to study) and computer generated homework. The Center teaches personal qualities such as discipline, and self-control, self-respect and respect for others. Some of our special programs include, teen-parent workshops, anti-drug and tobacco seminars, and nutritional support programs. The Center encourages community participation and volunteerism to further enhance the civic involvement of our participants.
Program and Purpose
The Arcola Learning Center is a year-round, community-based organization. A retired Washington County elementary school educator (Ernestine Thompson, recently deceased) founded the Center in 1979 in one room of a local church. At its inception the program had more of a recreational orientation than academic. However, it soon became clear that children in the community, town population of 361, had nothing to do and “hung out” idly on street corners during the summer school breaks. The after-school program, as it was called at the time, quickly became a wholesome environment where children began to congregate and take part in a variety of recreational activities and games. In 1995, the Learning Center received its first in-kind donation of the old Washington County Head-Start building. Through capable leadership, the after-school program evolved into the Arcola Learning Center, specifically designed to enhance the academic potential, cultivate the moral/spiritual and psychological well being of its participants. The current facility located at 102 Main Street in Arcola was acquired in 2005.
Benefits and Future Focus
The Center has provided and continues to provide a much-needed service to the most vulnerable and at risk children of Arcola and the surrounding communities. The Center serves children ages 5-18 (K-12) and, is open to anyone regardless of race, creed, or color residing in rural Washington County. With the closure of Arcola’s Chambers Middle School in early 2009, the role of the Learning Center took on an even more significant role in the life of the community. The Center provides an equitable, safe and wholesome environment for children to spend time and learn, while providing “peace of mind” for parents in knowing that their children are functioning in a wholesome environment. Further, it affords an opportunity for parents to be involved in the growth and development of their children.
An early expansion to the Center’s program included a computer-aided education component. This component of the program enhanced our tutorial capability and was specifically designed to ensure that parents of the Center were computer literate. This was accomplished through weekly classes for parents. Through these classes parents learned how to navigate the WEB and to access web-based educational materials and modules utilized by the Center and the Hollandale School District. Additionally, they were instructed as to how to access and manipulate practice exercises and exams for the state administered tests and assessment tools. This provided for at-home reinforcement to target weaknesses in specific subject areas and afforded each parent the opportunity for greater involvement in the educational experience of their children.
The Center seeks to further develop and build community through its information gathering and dissemination process. The Center publishes a courtesy information bulletin, “ALL ABOUT TOWN” to keep the public updated activities at the Center as well as newsworthy events taking place in City Hall, in the town of Arcola and the immediate surrounding area and its citizens. The Center believes that an informed community is a progressive and pro-active community. Other beneficial programs and resources provided by the Center include presentations from its civic and community leaders on a variety of topics. Organizations such as the town’s Fire and Police Departments, the Mayor’s Office, and the Anti-Drug and Tobacco Task Force conduct some of the Center’s workshops and seminars.
During the 2015/2016 school years the Center’s on-going tutoring program and related activities were successful in improving the academic performance of participants. However, the greatest success of the program was the establishment of a “Virtual Classroom.” The Virtual Classroom provided a means by which students attending the Center could interact with students and teachers in remote locations. Remote locations included Arizona and a nearby city in the State of Mississippi. Ongoing efforts are made to expose participants to other venues outside of their immediate environment by partnering with other organizations to sponsor annual trips to historical sites and educational institutions of higher learning.
Future plans for the Learning Center include expansion of its educational program to include a Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) component. This and all undertakings by the Center are conducted not for profit and exclusively for charitable purpose in a manner consistent with Section 501(c) (3) Internal Revenue Code.