Richmond District

Daily Afterschool Programs for K-3rd Grade

Our after school programs strive to enhance what students have learned in school through enrichment activities, homework assistance and by providing opportunities to create long term friendships. The Richmond District YMCA provides after school programs at Lafayette and Argonne Elementary Schools.  We focus on character building, enrichment, homework help, relationship building, and good old-fashioned fun, all in an environment of health and safety. 

Argonne Elementary ASP is now accepting participants.

For more information on program registration, please contact Jasmine, ASP Coordinator at 415-666-9610 or jpunzalan@ymcasf.org

Our Philosophy

At the YMCA, we give kids an opportunity to make new friends, have new experiences, and the enjoy the kind of learning and exploration they just can’t get in the classroom. Our youth programs focus on three simple things:

Quality Staff - Role models who you can trust to keep your child safe, learn who they are, and encourage them to become who they will be next.

Flexibility - We offer choice for both you and your child. We want you to be able to choose the days you need and activities that meet your needs and your child’s interests.

Experiential Learning - Activities that get your child outside exploring the world around them. We believe that play is the best way to grow and learn.

Registration packets for the Fall 2011 are available at the branch & afterschool sites.

 (PLEASE NOTE THAT OUR LAFAYETTE SITE IS FULL--WE ARE STILL ENROLLING FOR OUR ARGONNE LOCATION)

Daily Curriculum

We will have six-six week sessions throughout the year focused on the category below. If your child is signed up for certain days, they will experience topics listed below. We are fortunate to have collaborations with fantastic organizations that enhance our curriculum.

Mondays-Science. Our sites will focus from the five senses to space exploration in everything in between.

Tuesdays-Health & Fitness. We will focus on games, sports and nutrition every Tuesday.

Wednesdays-Language Arts. We will make language arts fun with activities ranging from books that turn into movies, poetry and screenplay writing. 

Thursdays-The Arts. The arts will explore painting, music and everything within the arts.

Fridays-Community Building. In tradition with character building, we will work on teamwork, collaboration, the environment and more with this creative day.

Collaborations:  This year, we are fortunate to be able to collaborate with the following groups:

Project Astro (Astrological Society of the Pacific)-will bring in volunteer astronmers and resources to the afterschool classroom

Space Science LAB (Berkeley)-Providing us with curriculum and resources around solar enegry and NASA space explorations.

BizWorld-Providing curriculum and resources that will be integrated to Language Arts or Community Building

Team Up for Youth-Coaching Corps, a program of TUFY, recruits college volunteers that are placed at our afterschool programs for at least a semester to teach youth sports & teamwork.

2011-2012 School Year

Registration packets can be found at the front desk. Deposits of $160 are required on all applications are applied to the last 2 weeks of care—May Fees)

Priority Registration

Registration for the fall begins in March for returning afterschool families and April for new families. 

Payment Dates

Fees are due on the 20th of each month for the following month. You will receive a payment booklet which will provide you with the payment schedule for the coming year and the option to do an automated draft from your credit card. There are also Payment Boxes at each site for easy drop off. Please DO NOT drop cash in the Payment Boxes.  Fees are subject to change with the approval of the Board of Managers for the YMCA with one month written notice.  Fees are based on a monthly cycle. The after school tuition cannot be adjusted for absences or vacations. A $25 fee will be applied to accounts that are not paid by the 20th of each month.  Participants will be dropped from the program if payment is not received by the 1st of the month of service.

Withdrawal Policy

To withdraw your child from the program, you are required to submit a two-week advanced written notice to the Site Director.  Deposits will be applied to the last two weeks of care.  Refunds on deposits will be made to families in good financial standing.

Refund Policy

We will gladly refund any pre-payments or deposits upon receiving your two-week advanced written withdrawal notice. 

Financial Assistance

Financial assistance, to the extent possible, is made available through the generosity of our members and donors.  Be aware that incomplete applications will not be considered for financial assistance and that 4-6 weeks must be allowed for processing the application. Parents will be asked to pay the entire program fee until the application is processed.  If you are granted financial assistance, the YMCA will credit your net month of care for payments that require retroactive adjustments. Financial assistance must be renewed at the beginning of each school year.

Children’s Council

All monthly timesheets must be completed by the last day of the month of service.  If a timesheet is not completed by the last day of the program, the parent/guardian will be responsible for the full tuition. If payment/timesheets are not received, your child will be dropped from the program.  Payments for fees or receipts must be attached to the timesheet by the last day of the month.

Our staff is dedicated to ensuring the safety and well being while in our care. They are trained in CPR/First Aid, Child Abuse Prevention as well as youth development throughout the year. Our ratios of 1 staff to 14 comply with the state licensing standards and ensure the safety of all youth in the programs.   

~Staff Bios~

Jasmine

Jasmine has her B.A. in Child in Adolescent Development Concentration- School Age Children.  She has worked at Lafayette for 5 ½ years.  As the ASP Coordinator, she is ultimately responsible for both sites.  Has worked some camp, full days, and child watch.  She has also tutored elementary school children and worked as a Sunday School teacher.  Her favorite TV Shows are Sponge Bob Square Pants, iCarly, Trueblood, Wipeout and loves Twilight. In her free time, Jasmine loves making chocolate covered strawberries, watching movies, hanging out with family and friends, and working on all sorts o crafts.  (LOVES the Giants!!!!)

ARGONNE

Maureen George aka “Mo”  HEAD TEACHER

Mo has also been working at Argonne for four years, and primarily with the kindergarten groups. Her position as Head Teacher has kept consistency and fun at Argonne. Her easy going nature makes it especially comfortable for new kindergarteners to warm up to their role at “the big kid school.” Mo is also one of the rare individuals who finds comfort and joy through cleaning and organization!

Franco TEACHER

Franco starting working this summer at summer camp and started Argonne Summer full of enthusiam and creativity. He is looking forward to bringing his flare to Argonne.

Mirgan (Ms. Choi) TEACHER

Mirgan was working at Cornerstone Academy before joining us at Argonne.  She one day hopes to be a MSW and focus on social work.  She also started working during Argonne Summer and is looking forward to a wonderful year at Argonne.

LAFAYETTE

Jessica HEAD TEACHER

Jessica just moved from Boston and teaching ESL.  She brings a wealth of experience and knowledge and is looking forward to a wonderful year at Lafayette and learning all about San Francisco

Katie TEACHER

Katies is currently a student at City College of SF and was worked our camp programs for the past three years.  Her favorite TV show is House and her hobbies include going on bike rides, watching movies and attending SF Giants games. 

 Evan TEACHER

Evan has been with the YMCA for three years working our camp programs and our teen skate program through FLEX and last year as a sub for the afterschool programs. With that experience and his coursework, he comes to Lafayette with excitement and openness.

On-Site Care

All Children in our after school programs must be attending either Lafayette or Argonne.

Sign In & Out

There are no in/out privileges in our program. Once your child is signed out, they are considered gone for the rest of the day. Parents/guardians are required by State Licensing to sign their child out or have an authorized representative sign a child out every day.  This is for your child’s safety to prevent unauthorized pick-ups. There is a sign-in and out sheet at each site.

Release Policy

For your child’s protection, we must have a current release and participant information form on file at the site.  We will not, without your prior consent, release your child to any person other than the individuals authorized by you on your registration form. You must have at least two emergency contacts listed on the application form.  It is your responsibility to keep this information current, along with changes in address and phone numbers.

Late Pick-Ups

Please keep in mind that our after school programs close at 6 p.m. All children must be picked up by this time, otherwise the program will ask parents to pay $1.00 per minute after 6 p.m. The following procedure will be followed in the event that your child is not picked-up on time:            

We will attempt to call you and all of the people on your child’s release form until we can contact someone that can pick up your child.

If contact has not been made by 7 p.m., the Police and Child Protective Services (CPS) will be notified to pick-up your child.

For safety purposes, we may need to transport your child to the Richmond District YMCA branch.  We will leave a message by phone and will post a notice on the door of the after school program if this is necessary.

Discipline Policy

For the benefit of your child, the YMCA would like to collaborate with you, your family and your child’s school.  Any difficulties that your child is having at home or school is likely to affect their behavior at the YMCA.  Keeping us informed of any problems will help us to be sensitive to your family’s needs.  This will also enable us to provide the best possible environment where everyone (children, family, and staff alike) have the potential, support and resources needed for success. Our approach to discipline utilizes positive reinforcement and preventative measures.

The YMCA is committed to providing safe programs in which all children can be successful and where all children are safe.  In the event that a child’s behavior cannot be improved through the above steps, the following steps will be taken:

• Staff will inform the parent/guardian of the behavior and will seek additional suggestions on how to handle the child’s behavior.  If the behavior continues, the parents/guardians will be asked to come to the YMCA to meet with staff to work out a resolution plan.
• The YMCA will attempt to provide the necessary additional support (i.e. volunteer staff) and/or will make a referral to an outside agency to make success possible.
• If none of the above measures are effective, your child will be asked to leave the program.   

**In order to protect other families and participants, children who exhibit extreme violent behavior may be asked to leave the program after only one incident and without additional attempts to resolve an issue.**