Vaughn Now Among L.A.’s BEST Schools

Hoping to deter low-income children from dropping out, joining gangs and committing crimes, city and school officials announced Monday the expansion of a nationally recognized after-school program.

The program--called L.A.’s Better Educated Students for Tomorrow--will grow from 28 schools to 62 citywide, totaling 26 in the San Fernando Valley. By the end of the current school year, it will involve more than 10,000 students ages 5 to 12.

“[L.A.’s BEST] allows you kids to have fun after school and to learn things,” Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan told an estimated 1,200 elementary students from the Vaughn Next Century Learning Center.

During a ceremony at the charter school, the children clapped and sang, while girls in long white dresses with lace shawls danced. With 600 students enrolled in L.A.’s BEST, Vaughn is the first of the program’s new schools to open.

The program was started in 1988 by Mayor Tom Bradley. It is a partnership with the mayor’s office, Los Angeles Unified School District and the private sector and funded by state, federal and private grants. The free program is designed to help students with reading and math and encourages participation in activities such as chess, art, dance, music and sports.

With the support of City Councilman Alex Padilla, Assemblyman Bob Hertzberg (D-Sherman Oaks), mayoral candidate Steve Soboroff, other political representatives and business leaders, all of whom were present, Riordan said the program is an investment in students’ future.

Afterward, Ernesto Rojas, 10, high-fived Riordan and challenged him to an after-school game of chess. “I think this will be fun,” Ernesto said, when the mayor promised to play him in the next few weeks.

His mother, Elsa Rojas, called the after-school program a relief, because now she knows her son is safe while she works. “I’m very happy and proud,” she said.