Registration is now open for a free on-campus after-school program for kids ages 5 to 17, providing tutoring and recreation for children of current Long Beach City College students and employees.
The Viking Clubhouse is located inside the T Building at the Liberal Arts Campus, and is open weekly Monday through Thursday from 2-8 p.m. and 2-6 p.m. on Friday.
The program’s goal is to alleviate stress for student parents who are balancing going to school and raising children.
“We want to see them succeed academically and socially. That’s what our mission is, empowering the youth and the adults,” Viking Clubhouse director Ravyn Conner said.
The clubhouse operates in partnership with the Boys and Girls Club of Long Beach and accepts applications through their website.
Kids in the program participate in playing schoolyard games including four corners and steal the bacon inside the LAC gym.
The program provides snacks for those in the program, as well as a supper hour.
Parents have the option of dropping off their children themselves or having staff members pick them up from school in a designated van.
“We work around parents’ school schedules,” Conner said. “They can pick up and drop off their kids for any amount of time. It’s a come and go situation.”
The Viking Clubhouse’s staff members look after a total of 70 enrolled children, watching 30 kids at one time.
“The oldest kid (enrolled here) is 13 and the youngest is 5,” Viking Clubhouse staff member Karla Guido said.
The Viking Clubhouse allows student-parents to focus on their studies while allowing their children to thrive in academic and group settings.
The program also benefits staff members who aren’t parents like Guido, a business major at LBCC.
“Working at the Viking Clubhouse is convenient for me, since I also attend classes here,” Guido said.
Keyona Hooker, known to the kids as Miss Keke, started working at the Viking Clubhouse over a year ago, and now brings her own sons every day.
“I love the kids like they’re my own,” Hooker said.
