A community and school program researcher from Murray presented to a Senate caucus in Washington, D.C. this week to support afterschool programs.
Allison Dymnicki is a principal researcher with the American Institutes for Research. She spoke to the Senate Afterschool Caucusas part of a five-person panel on the role of afterschool programs in mitigating the long-term effects of trauma in youth. She said after-school programs can help youth develop skills and become resilient when they face adversity.
“So what we really want to do in our panel is say after school programs are one part of this and can be a really helpful partner in thinking about this in addition to school-based programs, family-focused efforts and community efforts,” Dymnicki said.
She said the opioid crisis and immigration policies are destroying families and displacing youth. Dymnicki also said the panel was well-received. She hopes the briefing starts a conversation on how afterschool programs help youth cope with trauma.