The last six months have been a busy period for the children, parents, and field staff and volunteers at NOC’s center at ONYX (Simmons Cay) in Bluffton.
About 40 children have registered in NOC’s after school and summer learning programs. The children are excited to come to NOC’s facility at ONYX, Monday through Thursday, where they enjoy healthy snacks and the support of teachers from local schools, dedicated volunteers, and NOC’s field staff. Parents are fully engaged, contributing snacks for the children, as well as helping to clean the center. A highlight of this period was the cheerful Christmas party, which was enjoyed by both children and parents.
The mobile unit from the Beaufort County Library has made bi-weekly visits to ONYX, providing the children with books that they can check out. This is a highly successful program for the children. In addition, the health screening program, in partnership with the Beaufort Memorial Hospital, was useful, especially for families who do not have access to affordable health care.
NOC expects these children to demonstrate improved learning skills in math, reading, and language arts when they take the school-administered standardized tests during this academic year.
