After the Bell going strong online

Posted by Press Release on April 22, 2020

After-The-Bell students proudly showed off their homemade masks created in an Arts & Crafts activity earlier this year. "We cannot wait to welcome our students back to After-The-Bell at Kennett Middle School," said Executive Director Dawn Doherty Kohl. "For now, stay safe and enjoy our virtual activities."

The leadership of the After-The-Bell program is pleased to announce that with the help of incredible community partners and the support of many local individuals, After-The-Bell will be running a robust and fun virtual program for any interested students this spring. Following Gov. Tom Wolf’s order that schools remain closed through the end of the current school year, the decision was made to move After-The-Bell activities online and to make them available to all interested students.

Founded in 1998, After-The-Bell has provided more than 6,000 middle school students in the Kennett Consolidated School District with safe and meaningful after-school activities. During the current crisis, virtual activities will be hosted on the After-The-Bell website, www.afterthebell.org beginning tomorrow, April 22. Any interested students, including elementary and high school students as well as students who reside in other school districts, are welcome to visit our website and participate in the activities to be offered.

After-The-Bell Executive Director Dawn Doherty Kohl also announced that the Kennett After-School Association Board of Directors, the governing body for After-The-Bell, has also voted to ensure that all ATB hourly employees who will not be working in the onsite program this spring will continue to get paid. In addition, the Board directed that $1,000 that had been set aside to cover activity fees for the spring program will now be donated to Kennett Area Community Services in support of the Kennett Food Cupboard.

“After-The-Bell is a proud member of the Kennett area not-for-profit community and we are committed to continue providing an important service to the children of this region,” Mrs. Doherty Kohl said. “We have been deeply touched by the extraordinary number of organizations and individuals that have stepped up to help us offer our students unique and engaging experiences during this challenging and uncertain time. Our goal is to help bring some normalcy and joy to students’ lives through participation in these virtual activities.”

One of the organizations that will be partnering with After-The-Bell is The Garage Community and Youth Center in Kennett Square. The leadership of both programs have joined together to connect students with tutors and other caring individuals who can help them to keep up with their online school classes and homework. “In our eyes, our teachers are heroes, and, working with parents, they are ensuring that the educational progress of our students will continue unabated,” Mrs. Doherty Kohl said. “Together with The Garage and their amazing Director Kristin Proto, we are honored to be able to support our teachers and parents in this effort.”