PRIEST RIVER — Priest River Lamanna High School’s 21st Century Community Learning Center Agoge afterschool program will sponsor a Lights On Afterschool rally on Thursday, Oct. 25, from 5-7 p.m. The rally will take place at the high school, 596 Highway 57.

The rally will be one of more than an expected 8,000 such events across America as part of Lights On Afterschool, the annual nationwide celebration of afterschool programs organized by the Afterschool Alliance, according to a press release from CCLC Agoge.

This year, Lights On Afterschool will highlight youth voices in the upcoming national election, encouraging kids to share their thoughts with the next president and teaching them about our electoral process. To that end, our rally will feature the theme, “How STEaM Impacts Our Government.”

The group has invited local candidates to the event and have asked them to make a brief introduction, Cherie Coldwell, 21st Century program director said in the release. Officials will then briefly talk about the importance of clubs in schools with emphasis on STEaM and community involvement in education.

“Speakers in Priest River and Bonner County will call for expanding afterschool opportunities so that every child who needs a program has access to one, and discuss the benefits of afterschool programs, including inspiring children to learn, keeping them safe in the hours when juvenile crime peaks, and providing relief to working families,” Coldwell said.

At the event, parents and supporters will sign a petition that urges lawmakers not to deny or divert funding for afterschool programs.

Participants in the Lights On Afterschool rally include state and local candidates such as Kristin Collum, candidate for Idaho lieutenant governor; Jim Woodward and Ellen Weissman, candidates for District 1 Senate and House representative respectively; Steve Lockwood, candidate for District 3 Bonner County commissioner; local business leaders, educators and other officials.

The event will spotlight the range of programming available at the 21st CCLC Agoge, including its drone lab, cybersecurity competition team, and STEaM Club as well as several academic labs offering one-on-one tutoring and credit recovery. Hundreds of parents, supporters and community members are expected to attend.

The 21st CCLC Agoge opened in 2014 with a 21st Century Community Learning Centers grant from the U.S. Department of Education. The program now serves over 50 students and counting, providing homework assistance, mentoring, tutoring, and classes and clubs in sports, recreation, mathematics, and several other subjects. The program is a collaboration between the school system, local churches, wilderness organizations as well as community organizations.

The Afterschool Alliance is a nonprofit public awareness and advocacy organization working to ensure that all children have access to quality afterschool programs.

Information: Afterschool Alliance, afterschoolalliance.org