BEACON FACTS
WHAT ARE VI BEACONS?
Virgin Islands Beacons are
national award-winning community-driven after school learning centers. VI Beacons are open after school and in the
evenings for the purpose of providing safe, nurturing environments where children,
youth and families engage in productive educational, recreational, cultural and
social activities. Beacon programs are
open to the host school, neighborhood residents of all ages, and surrounding
private, public and parochial schools.
WHO RUNS VI BEACONS?
VI Beacons are
administered by Beacon Schools of the Virgin Islands, Inc. under the provisions
of a collaborative Memorandum of Understanding with the Virgin Islands
Department of Education. Beacon Inc. is
a 501©(3) non-profit corporation led by
a Board of Trustees with a territory-wide representation of business executives, education and public agency officials, civic organization heads, parents and community leaders. The Trustees are charged with the formulation
of policy; trade-off analysis; the identification of winning projects; the
development and execution of fund raising initiatives; authorization of
resource investments, and the review of
performance measurements. The Trustees
employ a director responsible for executive goal-setting, community outreach
among public, private and non-profit agencies, and oversight of territory-wide
Beacon umbrella operations. The Trustees
also employ site and special project coordinators responsible for the coordination
of site and special project day to day operations.
WHEN WERE VI BEACONS
ESTABLISHED?
The first three VI Beacons
opened on the islands of St. Thomas, St. John and St. Croix in the fall,
1997. Two additional sites opened on St.
Thomas and St. Croix in the spring, 2000.
All Beacons are selected under the provisions of a standard RFP (request
for proposals) process. RFP’s are
voluntarily prepared by public school “improvement teams” comprised of school
administrators, faculty, staff, parents and their school-based community
partners. Host school sites are selected
by a territory-wide review panel comprised of Beacon trustees, VI Department of
Education officials, parents, and community leaders in accordance with
specified selection criteria.
HOW ARE BEACON PROGRAMS
DEVELOPED?
Beacon programs are
developed through a “community outreach”
approach enabling host schools, youth
and civic organizations, parents, church groups, government agencies, businesses and private citizens to
collaborate as Beacon “activity sponsors”.
Activity sponsors conduct activities and Beacon Inc. provides direct
administrative, monetary and in-kind
support through the distribution of space,
training, custodial and security
services, operating expenses, materials, supplies, equipment, stipends, and
volunteer recruitment assistance.
WHAT TYPES OF AFTER SCHOOL
ACTIVITIES DO BEACONS OFFER?
Beacon programs envelop a
broad range of activities ranging from after school tutorial and homework
assistance, computer classes, adult education and literacy, juvenile anti-violence and pregnancy
prevention, arts and crafts, English as a second language, mentoring,
youth-based life skills and parenting workshops to health and counseling
services, teen-led community service
projects, employment skills training, cultural arts, music,
dance, sports, youth/civic organization meeting sites, and services for individuals with
disabilities. Beacon programs are
designed to respond to the needs and requests of the host school and community. Activities are modified, added and/or expanded accordingly.
HOW CAN I BE A PART OF THE
BEACON EXPERIENCE?
Community involvement
encompasses enrollment as a member and/or activity sponsor; being an advocate promoting the support and
understanding of Beacons among family,
friends, co-workers and the
community at large; as a monetary or
in-kind contributors sponsoring Beacon programs, and participating as a
volunteers, monetary or in-kind
contributor the Annual Beacon Celebrity Golf Tournament held in August of each
year.