WHEREAS, Iowa is one of this country’s leaders in the percentage of parents who work outside the home,

WHEREAS, parents’ average work week exceeds their children’s school week by as much as 25 hours,

WHEREAS, 75 percent of sixth graders and 85 percent of eighth graders spend at least one hour unsupervised each day, according to the 2006 Iowa Youth Survey, and

WHEREAS, Afterschool programs:

• Provide safe, challenging, and engaging learning experiences that help children develop social, emotional, physical and academic skills.
• Support working families by ensuring their children are safe and productive after the regular school day ends.
• Build stronger communities by involving students, parents, business leaders and adult volunteers in the lives of young people, thereby promoting positive relationships among youth, families and adults.
• Engage families, schools and community partners in advancing the welfare of our children.

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that I, Governor Chet Culver, do hereby proclaim July 9 as “Supporting Families and Communities through Afterschool,” the day celebrating the statewide release of the Iowa’s Blueprint For Afterschool, a tool for communities, families, youth and policymakers to plan for the next steps in providing high quality, accessible afterschool programs around the state of Iowa.  AND BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that this governor enthusiastically supports strong afterschool programs in large and small communities throughout Iowa.