Just a few years ago, Sloatsburg Elementary School had several bustling after school programs, including Homework Club and the Family Resource Center. Both programs were geared toward providing homework assistance to elementary school students but were lost in the 2013/14 school district budget cuts.

Laura Van Ham thinks the Sloatsburg Library is the perfect place for local students to gather for a bit of homework help. Van Ham is New York State certified in elementary education and also a literacy specialist, and recently joined the Library as head of kids’ programming. Van Ham envisions the library’s Homework Help session as “picking up where Homework Club left off.”

“I think the library’s a good place for people to come together,” said Van Ham about the new Homework Help initiative, which is geared toward third through fifth graders who might need a bit of extra help with school work.

The program will provide weekly Tuesday and Wednesday supervised homework sessions through the end of the school year, and is open to Sloatsburg Library patrons with kids attending 3rd through 5th grade at Sloatsburg Elementary School. Tuesday’s Homework Help runs from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. with Wednesday’s session slated for 6 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Homework Help begins Tuesday, January 13 and Wednesday, January 14.

The effort is part of Sloatsburg Library’s effort to create vital community programming, which, Van Ham said, she hopes helps provide support for kids who might need assistance in organizing projects or have questions about a particular subject.

Another new program Van Ham is launching is the library’s Teen Committee, scheduled to meet for the first time this coming Wednesday, January 7, from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. The Teen Committee is open to middle and high school students who are interested in creating and planning Sloatsburg Library activities specific to teens.

“I’m really interested in bringing teens back to the library,” said Van Ham. The library sees a drop-off in youth involvement as kids hit middle school, usually due to increased activities and school work. With the Teen Committee, Van Ham would like to build programming specific to that group.

Van Ham envisions the teen program eventually having a community service component.  The idea, she said, is to brainstorm and engage teens so that they will continue using the library.

Both Homework Help and the Teen Committee are efforts to create a community connection with library patrons and to see if the library can fill a programming need.

“I want kids and teens to continue using the library, to see it as a resource and place to go,” she said.

For more information on the Sloatsburg Library’s Homework Help and Teen Committee programs, visit the Library’s website at SloatsburgLibrary.org. Or call the library at 845-753-2001.