Program For At-Risk Youth in Danger

An afterschool program that has helped dozens of at-risk children excel is in jeopardy.

The Family and Neighborhoods Institute's afterschool program focuses on teaching children the skills they need to pass end-of-grade tests. But the grant that funds the program for third- through eighth-grade students is about to run out, and there is no guarantee of future funding.

The program has helped eighth-grader Isaiah Handy raise his grades from Cs to Bs. And program founder Mary Mosely says 91 percent of the students pass end-of-grade tests.

For Handy, the hard-earned Bs on his report card are reward enough.

"I know what I'm here for," he said. "I know why I'm supposed to be here, and that's what makes it so enjoyable for me."

Dorothy Bartlett has seen the benefits of the program in her son. She enrolled him when he began to fall behind in school, and says the change was immediate.

"It made me feel good, because when he came over here, that made me know he was able to get the work," Bartlett said.

The directors of the program can apply for another state grant, but if they can't get more funding, the future of the program - and its students - will hang in the balance.

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Tags - At-Risk Youth Troubled Teen Programs