OWASSO, Okla. — Owasso Public Schools impletmented a new program this school year known as SPARK.
It is a before and after-school care program. 2 News told you about it in August with school started.
Now, with a few months under their belt, 2 News spent the morning in before-school care to see how it's helping families.
"Between normal class hours and inside normal working hours are a real challenge for us to figure out child care," said parent Jodie Treeman.
Treeman's son Max attends Bailey Elementary School in Owasso. As a single working mom, she needs help with child care after school, but with limited options, she's had a hard time finding it.
"Especially once they get a little bit older, you don't have daycare options, but you still have to figure out child care," she explained.
SPARK is helping families with that.
It stands for Supplemental Programs and Activities for Ram Kids. It runs for two hours before the first bell and two hours after the last bell.
"Not having to worry about his care after school is fantastic," Treeman said. "I know he's safe. If my workday runs a little bit late, I don't have to worry about getting here right at 5/5:15 p.m. to pick him up."
Plus, it's not just making parents happier. SPARK Director Melissa Zumwalt said the kids are loving it too.
"School is their happy place. It's their safe place. So getting to be there longer has been awesome," Zumwalt said. "We've had several families say, 'I told them I could pick them up early today, and they didn't want to leave SPARK.' So that’s a good thing knowing that our kids are really having a fun time and feeling engaged, safe, and protected here at SPARK.”
But the program isn't just for the students that are in it. It's also for high school students to get internship credit.
"They can work in the program either in the morning or afternoon, get paid, get job experience while still receiving their high school credit," Zumwalt explained.
She said the high school students have the energy to keep up with the kids, and are closer in age, so students are drawn to them.
Beyond that, Zumwalt said they get to give back to the schools they attended.
"They love that they get to come back and pour back into the school that helped grow them, and so we love that, but it keeps them engaged with Owasso," she said. "We're even hoping some of them might choose teaching as a career because of their involvement with this program."
However, it hasn't been all easy. The district has had to figure some things out along the way with the program.
“We purchased basic supplies, and we are learning oh our kids at this particular site love to build or our kids at this particular site love puzzles, so we are learning our kids a little bit better and knowing what supplies," Zumwalt said.
However, she said overall, it's going great, and Treeman agrees.
"I get him (Max) back in the afternoon, and he's a happy kid," she explained.
The SPARK director said nine of the 10 sites still have openings in the program.
So, if your student attends elementary or middle school in Owasso and this would help your family, you can sign them up on the district website.
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