Providing a safe space for Columbus’ children

COLUMBUS, Ohio ( WCMH ) — Summer youth program leaders said their goal is to provide a safe space for kids and make an impact on their future. This year, the City of Columbus put more than $20 million toward helping these programs meet that goal.

Mayor Andrew Ginther had the chance to check in on the progress of one of those programs at the YMCA Hilltop location. The YMCA of Central Ohio has summer programming at three locations.

It one of 90 organizations that received city funding. Other organizations range from smaller grassroots programs to neighborhood centralized organizations.

YMCA leaders said this summer that its Hilltop location has the most youth enrolled in their teen summer experience consistently attending. This is for teens in 6th to 12th grade.

Ginther said one of his biggest hopes when making investments into youth programming like this is that teens will get involved.

“But middle schoolers are a real focus and target of some of these neighborhood-based organizations to help us reach kids that we haven’t been able to reach historically, that we want to keep safe, keep them engaged,” Ginther said.

President and CEO of the YMCA of Central Ohio Tony Collins said the teens are learning leadership skills and working on STEM-based learning.

“Here at the Y, they get connected with things that are so exciting for them that it gives them new adventures. So, teens to me are the most important for us to connect with, especially from that impact standpoint for their long term, their long-term future,” Collins said.

He said the mission is to surround the children with adults who care about them and help them through their next phase in life.

“Kids know the direction,” Collins said. “They just need help and they need somebody to be there for them. Right. It’s not necessarily keeping folks out of trouble. It’s giving them places to be where they have safe adults and safe places and fun things to do and learn.”

Ginther said a big reason for making million-dollar investments into summer youth programming is to prevent summer learning loss, but also to keep children safe and away from crime. He said this is a part of the city’s comprehensive neighborhood plan.

He said teenagers are often the ones who become involved in crime, middle school age specifically. In his opinion, the teens are in a transition period where they want to be independent but are still young.

The mayor said he hopes programs like this one intervene in their decision-making to show them productive and safe ways to spend their time.

“What it’s really about — prevention, intervention, enforcement, like, I mean, ultimately, we want to prevent young people from being the victims of crime or being the perpetrators of it,” Ginther said. “So that’s why these programs are so important for kids that are maybe on the wrong path or making poor decisions. Our hope is that intervention and that’s really geared and led by our office of violence prevention to make sure they’re getting the intervention they need to get back on the right track.”

The YMCA said it received more funds to grow its middle school after-school program during the school year.

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