With the safety of its Club members and staff as the top priority, Boys & Girls Clubs of Sarasota County will open its doors to serve a limited number of children through the new 2020 Great Futures Academy Summer Program at no cost on June 1.

This new program will take place at all six of the organization's Club locations Monday through Friday from 8 am to 5:30 pm. Two sessions will be offered during the summer with the first session running June 1 to June 26 and the second session running from July 6 to July 31.

As the organization continues to monitor the evolving pandemic, Boys & Girls Clubs of Sarasota County has designed the 2020 Great Futures Academy Summer Program in accordance with the health and safety protocols set forth by federal and local officials including the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention and the Florida Department of Health. As a result, the Boys & Girls Clubs must restrict the number of participants in each session to 333 children with the greatest academic needs in order to provide the highest quality of program at the highest level of safety. The limit was determined based on the number of rooms inside the organization’s Club facilities and the social distancing recommendations of maintaining gatherings of no more than 10 people at 6 feet apart.

At this time, the children in the program are between the ages of 6 and 12. They either attend a Title I school or are the children of local first responders.

“As we continue to emerge from this crisis, youth need the Boys & Girls Clubs more than ever to help them get back on track and ready to succeed academically when schools reopen,” said Bill Sadlo, President/CEO at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Sarasota County. “The decision to significantly reduce the number of children we can serve this summer was extremely difficult, as we know the need for positive youth development programs far exceeds the capacity in which our organization can safely deliver at this time. That’s why we must shift our operations in order to make the greatest impact on those children most at-risk for academic regression.”

The daily programs will feature academic enrichment activities with supplemental curriculum designed to empower youth to excel in school, become leaders, adopt healthy habits and plan for success after high school graduation. Meals and snacks will also be served to program participants at no additional cost.

The organization is also providing exploratory summer programs to a limited number of teens including academic enrichment, entrepreneurial training, leadership development, financial literacy, civic engagement and workforce development.

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