Wednesday, October 30, 2024
Ahead of the 2024-25 school year, Milwaukee Recreation set out to increase its number of available Child Care Camp locations, establishing partnerships with schools to re-open before- and after-school sites that have been closed since the pandemic. One such site is Camp Grant, the after-school program at U.S. Grant School (2920 W. Grant St.), which has returned to Milwaukee Recreation’s roster of camp sites for the first time in four years.
Child Care Camps, located within many Milwaukee Public Schools K-8 grade schools throughout the city, are open on regularly scheduled school days, and are led by qualified staff who are dedicated to providing quality, consistent, and affordable child care services.
Camp Grant is open on Mondays through Fridays from 2:25-5:30 p.m., starting immediately at the end of the school day. Now, almost two months into the relaunch of the Camp Grant program, camp director Carrie Felde and assistant camp director Bridgette Dainty have quickly established a warm, welcoming environment for families and an opportunity for young people to express their creativity and spend time with peers.
Dainty has spent years working with Milwaukee youth in a variety of academic and recreational settings. Dainty has been with MPS for the past 11 years, including the past 3 at Grant, where she is a fifth and sixth grade science teacher. She has also worked on Milwaukee Recreation’s summer playgrounds at Green Bay Playfield and Clovernook Playfield, as well as in the Twilight Centers program, Milwaukee Recreation’s free, social spaces for teens and young people. Working with Camp Grant participants after school hours allows her to form an even deeper connection with her students.
“We do have some really cool ideas and hands-on activities,” Dainty said. “The whole point is to make sure children are having fun, that they are safe, and to give [parents] that extra support.”
Felde has a long history with Camp Grant. Currently a third grade teacher, she has taught at the school since 1999, and worked for Grant’s after-school program for years prior to the pandemic.
“We want to really meet [the students’] needs and the families’ needs. I think it is important to have a safe space for students to be able to stay at school.”
In late October, an afternoon trip to Camp Grant revealed a simple activity—a multimedia arts and crafts project—yet it led to exactly the kind of positive conversation, smiles, and laughter that Felde and Dainty seek to cultivate every day.
Felde and Dainty are eager to build their program and connect with the school community. Already, they are talking about the future of the program and have compiled a list of ideas to engage students, including science experiments, team games, parties, and field trips. But no matter how many students attend Camp Grant on a given day, “we will give you the five-star treatment,” Dainty said. “I think we could do a lot of great things.”
Between Child Care Camps, Nita M. Lowey 21st Century Community Learning Centers, and Safe Places, Milwaukee Recreation is now offering affordable, extended-day enrichment and care at nearly 90 MPS locations throughout the 2024-25 school year. All Child Care Camp locations are licensed by the Wisconsin Department of Children and Families and participate in the YoungStar child care quality rating and improvement system. Free meals and snacks are also available daily.
To initiate the registration process at Camp Grant, please contact Felde or Dainty at 414-902-8000 (school office), 414-902-8055 (camp), [email protected], or [email protected]. To register or learn more about any of Milwaukee Recreation’s other before- and after-school sites, please visit our website and contact the listed site director at your preferred site.