Boys & Girls Club Blog

New Structure for Summer

Dear Boys & Girls Club Parents,

This is very important info about our summer program.

It is very important that you read all of this information because we want to make sure your child has an opportunity to participate in our summer program and not be left out.

The Boys & Girls Club summer program will be changing in the way your children are signed up, how many can participate, and how the day will be organized.

What’s new?

We have planned a whole new summer program for children ages 7-12, including structured classrooms and activities by age group. Your child’s class will move throughout our program areas each day with a staff leader who will stay with them through the day. Your children will get to experience various activities and programs each day, allowing all participants to try new things and enjoy everything the club has to offer. Unfortunately, there will no longer be “drop-in care” for children 7-12 years old during the summer.

The Boys & Girls Club will continue to run the Great Explorers Program for children ages 5-6. More information will be coming out soon about this program.

How do I sign my child up?

If you would like your child to be a part of our summer program this year, pre-registration and the holding fee is required. This means signing up ahead of time to save a spot for your child. This is important because we will only offer 50 spots per age group for kids ages 7-12. Pre-registration will be required for all children, although 5-6 year olds limit is based on licensing requirements.

Registration paperwork will be coming out January 9, 2017.

This will be mailed to each Club member’s home address, linked to our Facebook page, available on our website for online registration, handed out to every afterschool site child, and available at our Radford front desk.

How much does it cost?

We charge per week, not per day. This means that it is the same cost whether your child comes 3 days or 5 days.

Before 9am After 9am
$55 1st child $35 1st child
$35 additional child $20 additional child

How do I pay?

This year, payment will be due the Friday prior to the following week in order for your child to participate.

Scholarship assistance will be based on a sliding scale income but everyone will be expected to pay according to their income level. Assistance will be offered for children who are aged 7-12. County assistance is accepted for children 5-6 years old. If you are interested in acquiring assistance, please contact your caseworker. If you are interested, please ask the front desk for paperwork.

Forms of payment include: credit card, check, cash, and automatic payments from your bank account.

What if registration is full?

If you sign up, but the class has already reached the 50 limit, your child will be placed on a waiting list. We will serve children on a first come, first serve basis. This is why it is important to register as soon as possible to have your best chance of securing a spot for your child.

Once signed up, what is expected from me?

In order to keep your child’s spot through the summer, they will be expected to participate at least 3 days per week. They will need to be there by no later than 10am. For those of you who go on vacation, your child can be gone for up to one week without paying for that week. Any additional time away after that week, you will be financially responsible in order to save your child’s spot.  If you plan to have your child in summer school, you must document this on your registration form. If you cannot commit to these requirements, your child’s spot will be given to someone on the waiting list. Weekly payments must be kept current or your child’s spot will be given to the next family on the waiting list.

What are the expectations for my child to participate in the summer program?

Your child is expected to participate fully in each program following their class schedule and behave according to our Club rules. Children who choose not to follow these expectations will not be able to participate in our summer program.

What stays the same?

We will still be open at 6:30am for parents needing this extra fee based service before 9am.  We will remain open until 5:30pm.

Meals will still be included. Breakfast is served at 8:30am, Lunch at 11:15-12pm, and snack at 2:30-3pm.

How do field trips work?

Each age group will have a set schedule of 4-6 field trips planned for the summer. A flat field trip fee of $50 will be charged for the summer per child. That is because on field trip days that is the activity being offered that day for your child. Financial assistance for those who need it based on a sliding scale similar to our weekly fee scale. It is a sliding scale because all team leaders for that class are included on that field trip. If you choose to not have your child participate on the field trip, you must keep them home for the day.

What about teens?

We will be changing the teen schedule, as well. This summer, teens will be offered various camps each week from 9:30-11:30am. Examples of camps include, but are not limited to: kayaking, jewelry making, driver’s education, babysitting certification, CPR, career exploration, and STEM, to name a few. These camps will each have a fee attached, ranging from $5.00 to $100.00 depending on the camp. Teens can participate in a Spring T-Shirt Sale to cover costs of camps and field trips. Sign up begins March 1, 2017, with more information on camps and T-Shirt Sale coming prior to then.  If your teen needs to come to the Boys & Girls Club before 11:30am but they do not want to join any of the camps offered, they will have the opportunity to become a Junior Staff. This means that they will work under the supervision of an assigned Radford staff member, gaining work skills and helping facilitate 7-12 years old programs and activities. They will be required to wear name badges and Junior staff shirts and attend a Junior Staff training prior to working. After 11:30am, all teen Club members are welcome. Lunch and snack will be served each afternoon. There will be no fee for The Club teen members from 11:30am-5:30pm.

TraxOnline Parent Portal

Coming soon! The TraxOnline Parent Portal will be an online tool that will allow parents to register for summer, sign up for memberships, optional field trips, teen camps, programs and after school care, as well as make payments on your account by credit or debit card. If you are currently a Club family or have been members in the past, your information is already in our system, you just need to set up a password and update your household information in order to activate your online account. ALL parents are strongly encouraged to sign up for this system as the Club is moving toward being paperless! The portal will be available on our website (www.bgcosh.org) starting in January.

Save the Date!

Save the date for our open house for those of you who register for our summer program. It is a great way for you and your child to meet the summer staff and find out all about the activities that we will do during the summer months! It will be on June 7, 2017 from 6:00-7:30PM. Please join us for a light dinner and a fun scavenger hunt.

In Closing

We realize this is a change compared to our summer program experience in the past. In order to contain costs, provide consistent staffing, and keep club members safe, we believe this is the direction we need to go to provide the best experience possible. We ask your patience, especially in this first year of new programming structure. We are all in a learning curve on this journey.

For any questions concerning our summer program, registration, or anything else in this letter, please contact Lindsay Clark (Lindsayc@bgcosh.org) or Lori Fields (Lorif@bgcosh.org).