KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — While it wasn't the semester they expected, students in the after-school program at Centro Hispano, a nonprofit that serves Hispanic families in East Tennessee, made the most of it.
Typical activities were scaled back and groups were smaller than in the past, often switching to virtual when needed. For the final assignment of the year, students were tasked with making a video detailing the highlights from their semester.
"The videos were a way of the kids getting a hands-on project that they could share what they've been working on with their parents and have the parents feel like they had an inside look at some of the activities that were going on since we weren't able to have those family events," Megan Barolet-Fogarty, Director of Youth and Family Engagement, said.
Barolet-Fogarty said that at Centro Hispano they focus on supporting the entire family, and with several family events forced to cancel due to the pandemic, the videos helped them feel connected.
Barolet-Fogarty said they already have a game plan for the rest of the 2020-2021 school year, choosing to focus on mental and physical health.
"We are making our whole semester focused on wellness, broadly speaking, so we're partnering with Knox County Health Department and implementing a nutrition education program, and our social-emotional curriculum is focused on children from immigrant families," Barolet-Fogarty said.
Centro Hispano is offering virtual tutoring sessions and is currently looking for volunteers.