(Photo | Courtesy of Bend Park and Recreation District)
Program Enrollment Includes Limited Part-Time Options to Serve More Families
Bend Park and Recreation District (BPRD) is opening the application process for the Kids INC afterschool care program immediately following the holiday weekend.
The Kids INC application process for the 2022-23 school year begins on Tuesday, May 31.
- Applications must be received by June 7 at 5pm to be included in the initial selection process. A lottery will be used to determine selection and waitlist status.
- Applicants will be notified of their status by June 17 and will have until June 23 to secure the space with a first month deposit.
To learn more and apply online, visit the BPRD website, between May 31 and June 7 at 5pm. If online access is a barrier, applications can be accepted by phone at 541-389-7275.
The primary purpose of Kids INC is to support the afterschool care needs of working parents and guardians who do not have other options for their elementary school-aged children. Due to limited capacity, BPRD staff will prioritize those families and guardians who need full-time afterschool care to sustain their employment.
“We know that childcare needs are great in Bend and we do all we can as the largest provider of afterschool care for school-aged children,” said Matt Mercer, BPRD recreation services director.
For the 2022-23 school year, Kids INC will offer part-time options as well as full-time. Part-time space offering is a direct result of parent and guardian input from the more than 150 people who attended 12 town hall meetings and the over 600 online survey received this spring to inform next year’s program. While 80 percent of people indicated that they needed full-time care, over 90 percent responded that they would be interested in part-time options if full-time was unavailable.
“Thank you to all families who took time to engage with us. It deepened our understanding of the importance of afterschool care to support working families and how we may be able to help more families with part-time care,” added Mercer.
Families selected for part-time spots will have an option to move to full-time when spaces become available, if they indicate during the lottery that full-time care is preferred. This may occur prior to the start of the school year start or any time during the school year, based on staffing levels and space availability at the school.
BPRD asks that families that do not rely on afterschool care to meet job requirements or have alternate afterschool care options available to consider one of the many enrichment and sport programs.
