There is a great need for quality afterschool programs for middle school youth in Miami-Dade County. Due to economic necessity, there is a greater prevalence of parents working outside the home than ever before. Their work hours typically extend later in the day than their child’s school hours. This has created a multitude of problems for these families. Of paramount concern to many is the supervision, or lack thereof, of their children. This is particularly so for middle school children who are seemingly too old for traditional care and too young to be unsupervised during the after-school hours. Left unattended, these children are at higher risk for drug, alcohol and tobacco use; delinquent behavior, victimization and injury than their peers who are supervised after school. Statistics show that most juvenile crime is committed between the hours of 2:00 PM and 8:00 PM, with the largest number of offenses committed in the hours immediately following students’ release from school.
