ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, January 25, 1996 TAG: 9601250049
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOEL TURNER STAFF WRITER
Ten-year-old Santana Fields often makes A's on her spelling tests, thanks to an after-school tutoring program at Roanoke's Fallon Park Elementary School.
Teachers help Santana, a fifth-grader, review the spelling words so she's better prepared. Santana also gets help with her homework if she needs it. She completes her assignments before she goes home in the afternoon.
In the after-school program, Santana can spend more time on the school's computers - learning new skills, writing letters or playing games. She also can practice spelling words on the computer.
Nine-year-old Kristy Lucas, a fourth-grader, also likes the homework assistance and extra computer time.
"This helps me do better in class. I've already finished my homework today," Kristy said one recent afternoon.
Sixty children are enrolled in the after-school program at Fallon Park, one of seven Roanoke elementary schools that offer tutoring for economically disadvantaged children. About 180 children citywide participate in the program, which is financed with federal money.
The after-school tutoring has helped the children improve their reading, mathematics and language scores, said Dolores Johns, director of Roanoke's federally funded, basic skills programs for disadvantaged children.
In the past school year, 71 percent of the children improved their grades, and 80 percent showed improvement in completing their homework, Johns said. Nearly 85 percent also had better attendance and class participation, she said.
But the program might have to be reduced or eliminated next year as part of a plan to balance the federal budget.
States and school districts nationwide stand to lose 17 percent of their federal Title I funds if $1.1 billion in education cuts endorsed by the House of Representatives are adopted. That would mean a $450,000 loss for Roanoke.
The Senate's proposal has smaller reductions.
Once Congress and President Clinton agree on a budget, an appropriations measure for the federal Department of Education will be approved.
Teachers say the proposed budget cuts could cripple efforts to help disadvantaged children, prevent failure and narrow the achievement gaps between schools.
Title I is the largest federal program in the nation to provide tutoring, smaller classes and computer assistance to low-income students.
Roanoke receives $2.6 million in federal Title I money. Most of the funds are used to pay 40 teachers and 27 aides, who provide special help during the regular day at 13 elementary schools with large numbers of disadvantaged children.
The city also uses some funds to pay part of the costs for the after-school program and a preschool program for disadvantaged 4-year-olds.
If the House-endorsed cuts are adopted, Johns said, the after-school program might have to be eliminated.
She said the administrative staff for the city's Title I operations would be reduced, but she doesn't know if that would be enough to absorb all of the cuts.
"We will try to avoid cutting or eliminating the after-school program if it's possible, but I don't know if we can," she said.
The after-school program was reduced substantially this year because of federal cuts a year ago. The number of schools was reduced from 16 to seven, and the number of children was lowered from 318 to 180. The program also was trimmed from three to two afternoons a week to save costs.
"We wanted to save the program because so many parents want it," Johns said. "Some protested when we said we might eliminate it."
Carolyn Patterson, special projects coordinator, said the after-school program supplements the regular-day assistance for disadvantaged children. It operates 90 minutes on Monday and Tuesday afternoons at Fairview, Huff Lane, Lincoln Terrace, Morningside and Virginia Heights elementary schools and Roanoke Academy of Math and Science, in addition to Fallon Park.
Peggy Morris, a parent volunteer at Fallon Park, said the after-school tutoring is "really needed" for some children who are having trouble in school.
"It is a good program, and you couldn't ask for better people," said Morris, whose son, Thomas, was in the program last year. Thomas has shown so much improvement that he no longer needs the extra help.
Unless an agreement is reached soon on the federal budget, school divisions will have trouble planning their 1996-97 budgets without knowing how much federal funding to expect.
Said Johns: "I hope we can keep the program, but we don't know what's going to happen."
LENGTH: Medium: 92 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: CINDY PINKSTON/Staff. Jenny Gibson, 10, quizzes Krissyby CNBThompson, also 10, on her multiplication tables after school at
Fallon Park Elementary. color.