Kids Place Details for Fall Session 2020

Dear Parents and Guardians,

These are unprecedented times. It is very understandable that you have a lot of questions. We want to answer them. Sometimes we know the answers, sometimes we have to seek more information and decide, and sometimes we just don’t know the answer. We appreciate your patience with us as we do our very best to make sure that you and your kids have the best quality child care.

Frequently Asked Questions and Important Documents

1. What is the cost? The cost is $150/child/week for the 9:00AM – 3:00PM Mid Day option and $185/child/day for the 7:00AM – 6:00PM Full Day option. There is also a $50.00 Family Annual Fee that is due at registration.
2. I’m getting emails about the YKP Fall Session, but I haven’t signed up. Are you emailing me in error? Well, actually, no one has signed up yet – registration doesn’t begin until August 17th. The communications you are getting are being sent to everyone on our mailing list so that our families can be informed of our plans. Much of this is moving quickly, so we are trying to do twice-a-week communications. Once the program begins, only those families enrolled will receive information about the events of the program. Please continue to read the emails we are sending you, as there could be information that will apply to ALL families, and we don’t want you to miss an important date or piece of information.
3. I can’t find an email that you sent – what should I do? Check the YWCA Kids Place website.
4. What is the “YKP Fall Session”? – The “Fall Session” is the program that we will offer over the first 8 weeks of school. It is not the typical before/afterschool program. It is the full day program, including both FULL TIME (7:00 – 6:00)  and MID DAY (9:00 – 3:00) options, that will occur between August 24 and October 16, 2020.
5. When I register, am I committing to all 8 weeks? YES. When you register you are committing to all 8 weeks of the Fall Session. You can pay weekly, but we agree to hold a space for you and you are agreeing to participate for all 8 weeks. In alignment with our regular school-year policy, if you choose to disenroll we require a 2 week notice.
6. What if the session ends up being less than 8 weeks? What if school goes back before the 8 weeks is over? Do we still have to pay for 8 weeks? – NO. We will adjust fees due in accordance with the actual length of the program offered.
7. What if school is out longer than 8 weeks? Can we keep our spot and continue in the program? At this point, it would be our intention to continue to run the program, provided we had licensing approval,  a facility and staff to do so.
8. Gahanna just announced that they are having an 8:30 – 2:30 school day, but you’re offering a 9:00 – 3:00 option. Will you change it to match the school day? NO. There are many, many things that would have to change behind the scenes to adjust our model to fit an 8:30 to 2:30 schedule, and we can’t make it work. If you don’t think that 9:00 – 3:00 will work for you, please consider the 7:00 to 6:00 option.
9. Will my kids be in the same room? Likely. We’re going to try to group kids by schools, and so if your kids go to the same school they will be in the same group. The unknown at this point is enrollment numbers. If we get, say, 13 kids from one school, 9 of those kids will be in one room and 4 will be in another. At that point we may try to group them by age. We will defer to the onsite staff to make this determination, trusting them to make decisions based on health and safety best practices.
10. What if my child or someone in my family gets sick and has to quarantine? WIll I lose my spot in the Fall Session? NO. We will hold your spot, provided you continue to make prompt, weekly payments. This follows our traditional YKP program policies.
11. What are the staff qualifications for the YKP Fall Session? Our staff have varying backgrounds and levels of education. Many have BA or MA degrees, some in the field of education. Our staff are highly trained to ODJFS safety and development standards, engage in regular professional development to ensure Step Up to Quality standards, and complete at least ten hours of additional professional development annually. Proudly, our directors and administration have over 185 years combined experience. These are the same professionals who care for your children in the before and afterschool programs in your communities and do so with expertise and confidence. That said, our staff are not classroom teachers. We will not be assuming the role of formal educators in this program. We will provide a supportive environment conducive to learning and support their academic achievement as we do in our YWCA Kids Place programs. As previously mentioned in our communications, it will be the responsibility of parents to monitor the academic progress of their children.
12. Will there be internet available and will students receive help getting connected? YES. Both the Gahanna and Westerville locations will have internet, and we will help connect devices. We will not have school provided information, such as websites, log in information, assignments or any schedule assigned by your child’s teacher, so please make sure your child has that information.
13. If school continues to be remote, will you be open for holidays? YES and NO and WE DON’T KNOW. We will be closed for Labor Day, but open for Gahanna’s Comp day on October 9th and Teacher Inservice Day on October 12th, as well as for Westerville’s Central OEA/NEA day on October 16th. Other holidays on the horizon we are unsure of at this time.
14. Why do I have to sign up for all 8 weeks? Why can’t I just select the weeks I want? This is recommended best practice in not only our program, but in programs all over the city, state and nation. Our intention is to not add or switch any students in groups after they are assigned to minimize interaction with other students and prevent possible spread of COVID19 by asymptomatic carriers. Students who enter and leave the program create spaces in the groups that we can’t fill. Again, this is for the health and safety of your children and our staff.
15. What about masks? What should I know? Each child should wear a clean mask to the program every day. We are able to provide cloth or fabric masks to any child who needs one. Kids will need to wear their masks all day while in the building. Kids can remove masks during outside play time.
16. Do I have to register for the YKP Fall Session to be able to register for the before and afterschool programs? NO. One program is not dependent upon the other. We will announce when registration begins for before and after school. Until that time the only program we are registering for is the YKP Fall Session.
17. What if I choose to disenroll? Do I still have to pay for all 8 weeks?  – As a service to our families, in alignment with our regular school year policies, if you choose to disenroll we require a 2 week notice.
18. What do I need to bring to the program? Here is a list of supplies your child should bring every day to the program: healthy lunch, headphones/earbuds, mask, laptop/chromebook, and all other materials needed to complete their school assignments, water bottle, PLEASE make sure everything your child brings is labeled with a name. (see main fall session page for all details)
19. What other things should we make sure the YKP staff have to be able to properly assist with schoolwork? School schedule of required meetings, websites, passwords, and anything else you can think of that might help the staff. As a reminder, our staff are not classroom teachers. We will create an environment conducive to learning and assist children who need clarification or help on lessons. It is the responsibility of the parents to monitor academic progress, assignment completion and progression.

Questions? We’re here to help!