Clear Channel Outdoor Will Support the
24th Annual Lights On Afterschool With Coast-to-Coast
Digital Billboard Campaign on October
26th
WASHINGTON, Oct. 4, 2023
/PRNewswire/ -- Afterschool champions led by the Afterschool
Alliance, the National League of Cities, and the National Summer
Learning Association are joining Clear Channel Outdoor (NYSE: CCO)
for a broad-based visibility campaign across nearly 2,000 digital
billboards as part of the 2023 national Lights On
Afterschool rally. The ads recognize the extraordinary work
afterschool programs are doing to support students, from providing
homework help and caring mentors, to offering healthy meals and
snacks, to keeping students safe and learning after the school days
ends, to providing team-based learning activities in STEM (science,
technology, engineering, and math), the arts, and other fields, and
more.
Now in its 24th year, Lights On Afterschool is
the only national rally for afterschool programs. Throughout
October, and on October 26 when the
official Lights On Afterschool rally will take place,
programs across the country are holding events focused on
academics, science and technology, arts and music, sports and
fitness, community service, and more. The events send the message
that demand for afterschool programs is high, too many students are
without programs, and the pandemic exacerbated both staff and
funding shortages.
Some 24.7 million U.S. children not in an afterschool program
would be enrolled, if a program were available to them, according
to a survey of 1,500 parents commissioned by the Afterschool
Alliance and conducted by Edge Research in 2022. That is the
highest number ever recorded. Unmet demand for afterschool programs
is significantly higher among Latino and Black children (at 60% and
54% respectively) than among children overall (49%). Cost is the
top barrier to enroll, cited by 57% of parents as a reason for not
enrolling their child. Ninety percent of parents rate the quality
of the program their child attends as excellent (51%) or very good
(39%).
Lights On Afterschool serves as a reminder that
a large body of evidence demonstrates improvements in grades,
school attendance, behavior, and more among children who
participate in afterschool programs. Researchers have also found
that students in afterschool programs are more engaged in school
and excited about learning, and develop critical work and life
skills such as problem solving, teamwork, and
communications.
Organized by the Afterschool Alliance, Lights On
Afterschool includes events organized by schools, 4-Hs, Boys
& Girls Clubs, YMCAs, cities, parks, museums, community
centers, and others. Some 8,000 events this year will showcase the
skills students gain and the talents they develop in their
afterschool programs.
Clear Channel Outdoor is supporting Lights On Afterschool
by donating some of its most prominent space to display afterschool
messages on digital billboards, bus shelters, and poster spaces in
25 markets around the country throughout the month of October. On
October 26, Clear Channel will
feature afterschool messages on two jumbo billboards in
New York City's Times Square and
will bathe Boston's South Street
Station in blue and yellow in honor of Lights On
Afterschool, complementing a similar lighting of the iconic
Empire State Building that evening. Supporters also will be
lighting up local landmarks and buildings across the country to
show their support for afterschool programs.
"The afterschool movement is tremendously grateful for all Clear
Channel Outdoor does to recognize the many ways afterschool
programs boost students and families," said Afterschool Alliance
Executive Director Jodi Grant.
"Lights On Afterschool celebrates the work these programs do
to keep kids safe, inspire them to learn, and give working parents
peace of mind that their children are safe and supervised after the
school day ends. We are very proud that Clear Channel Outdoor is
helping make this event a success again this year."
"Local elected officials have long recognized the many ways
afterschool programming supports young people, their families and
communities," said NLC CEO and Executive Director Clarence E. Anthony. "So at the National League
of Cities, we are very proud to celebrate and support Lights On
Afterschool again this year. City leaders rely on these
programs to feed children, keep them safe and active, provide
enrichment and learning opportunities, and support working
families. Many cities have invested their own local American Rescue
Plan dollars to expand programs to serve more young people. NLC is
so pleased to partner with the Afterschool Alliance to encourage
mayors to light up their city halls or city landmarks and/or issue
proclamations in honor of Lights On Afterschool."
"The National Summer Learning Association is very pleased to
join with our close partners at the Afterschool Alliance, National
League of Cities and Clear Channel to celebrate the importance
and impact of afterschool and summer learning on the lives of
millions of children and families across the United States. Thousands of
local Lights On Afterschool celebration events in all
50 states shows policymakers, education, and civic Leaders the
increasing, universal and bi-partisan need and support for
continued investment in these programs and all our kids," said
Aaron Philip Dworkin, CEO of the
National Summer Learning Association.
"We're proud to stand with our partners in
celebrating Lights On Afterschool to spotlight the
essential role afterschool programs play in the lives of young
people, working families and local communities across America,"
said Dan Levi, EVP & CMO, Clear
Channel Outdoor. "As unmet demand for afterschool programs
continues to skyrocket, these powerful messages on our digital
billboards will illuminate the need for greater accessibility to
high-quality afterschool learning and enrichment opportunities for
our nation's youth."
The Afterschool Alliance is a nonprofit public awareness and
advocacy organization working to ensure that all children and youth
have access to quality afterschool programs. More information is
available at www.afterschoolalliance.org.
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SOURCE Clear Channel Outdoor