What is the WonderKids Model?

WonderKids utilizes the synergy of schools, families, and community resources to expand opportunities for youth. WonderKids Afterschool manages the business aspects of afterschool (staffing, financial management, program development, and quality assurance) and organizes community resources to provide dynamic, fun, creative activities for kids after school. WonderKids applies national research and evidence-based practices to its structure and activities that are proven to accelerate positive student outcomes. A three pillar partnership between OSSU, WonderKids, and the Community is integral to the success of this new model.

  • OSSU partners with WonderKids to ensure the sites are safe, accessible, and that the needs of students in the Supervisory Union are met.

  • Community assets like public libraries, organizations, natural resources, and recreational groups  provide fun, dynamic, educational enrichment experiences for the kids.

  • Families of participants and participants themselves partner in this model, helping to guide program offerings, provide support through fundraising efforts, and assist staff with programs when possible.

A New Model for Afterschool Programming in OSSU

The statewide afterschool network is working to ensure that all Vermont kids have access to high quality afterschool programs. It is our collective responsibility to create and sustain safe, reliable, and enriching programs so that children in Orleans Southwest Supervisory Union are active, connected, engaged, and heard.

After more than 20 years of serving students in OSSU, the REACH! Afterschool Program, along with teachers, children, and families, felt the additional stresses of operating during the Pandemic. The staffing model and program structure spread resources too thin, and operating over capacity generated a culture of burnout and unsustainability. In fall 2022, this program was suspended due to a lack of available staff and to reevaluate how OSSU can offer afterschool and summer programming to its communities.

Fortunately, REACH! had cultivated numerous community partnerships which yielded individuals looking to pitch in and problem solve so that we could begin offering programs again. A new model has been created, which is funded initially and in part by a ​​State of Vermont Set-Aside Grant as part of the American Recovery Plan.

Since summer 2023, and with the support of our supervisory union and community partners, OSSU has contracted with RuralArts Collaborative to provide the WonderKids program to provide summer enrichment and afterschool programming, free of charge to all elementary age students.