EXPANDED SUMMER PRIME TIME PROGRAMS REACH MORE YOUTH WITH SUMMER FUN, LEARNING

Modified: August 17, 2022 4:08pm

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Date: 
8/17/22

Today, Erie County officials including Commissioner of Social Services Marie A. Cannon joined Erie County Legislator Howard Johnson (1st district), Thomas Beauford, Jr., President & CEO of the Buffalo Urban League, Operation Prime Time program providers and dozens of excited children at the Buffalo Urban League to enjoy some summer fun made possible through Operation Prime Time. Operation Prime Time grants to 74 local not-for-profit agencies are providing a total of $596,715 in funding to assist these organizations in providing adult-supervised activities in a safe environment throughout the summer recess period.

 

“We are grateful to be a part of a community that believes that every child deserves a chance to succeed. County Executive Poloncarz and our Erie County Legislators put that belief into action by consistently ensuring that funding is made available,” said Commissioner of Social Services Marie A. Cannon.  “We are proud of the diverse programs that we partner with to meet the needs of over 2,400 children of our community.”

 

Operation Prime Time provides for an adult-supervised environment for the school summer recess period. Program activities consist of positive youth development, including academic support, mentoring, cultural enrichment, and structured recreational activities that prevent delinquency, increase socialization, and foster respect for authority. The 74 sites participating in Operation Prime Time in 2022 are positively impacting the lives of hundreds of youth from across Erie County, with grant awards ranging from $3,000 to $14,700 to facilitate expanded programming.

 

The Buffalo Urban League is providing Earn and Learn Support and Casework services for 25 youth this summer, ages 14-20. Each youth is provided with a comprehensive, integrated client-centered and culturally-sensitive array of services that are individualized to their needs. In addition, youth mentoring is conducted in both small groups as well as through one-on-one relationships.

 

“Many youths, now ages 14-20, lost a full school year of in-person socio-emotional interaction with students and instructors during the pandemic due to remote learning requirements.  For some, this included key transitional periods like grade school to middle school or middle school to high school,” said Buffalo Urban League President & CEO Thomas Beauford, Jr. “Operation Prime Time offers students a culturally informed comprehensive development opportunity, which combines academic support, recreation, and mentoring in the student’s personal fields of interest.  Initial evaluations and ongoing wraparound services help students create their own vision plans and take accountability for their progress and success, with incentives to earn while they learn.  Youth Education and Development is a key component of the Buffalo Urban League’s 5-Point Community Empowerment Strategy.”

 

For more information:

 

On summer Prime Time programming, visit

 

https://www3.erie.gov/youthservices/summer-primetime-programming

 

 

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