By Sunayana Prabhu
RED BANK – It’s not just an after-school program. The Boys & Girls Club of Monmouth County Red Bank Unit (BGCMC) is a hub of opportunity and support for the community’s young people. In a presentation at the borough council’s Aug. 8 meeting, CEO Douglas Eagles detailed the breadth of the club’s initiatives, from academic assistance and career readiness to arts, sports and character development, highlighting the club’s transformative impact on the community.
BGCMC is a private nonprofit that not only inspires children between the ages of 5 and 18 but also provides support to families in need.
“When people think about Boys & Girls Clubs, a lot of people first think, ‘Oh, childcare. They babysit kids,’ and that couldn’t be further from the truth,” Eagles said before delving deeper into the purpose, the goals and the impact of the club which has four locations in Monmouth County serving more than 1,350 children.
The Red Bank branch is located on a quiet street corner at 138 Drs. James Parker Blvd.; the branches are in Asbury Park, Long Branch and Neptune. The club is focused on children “who need us most, to ensure that they can become responsible, productive, caring members of society,” said Eagles.
The club is open to all school-aged students in Monmouth County and many who attend experience high crime, poverty and unemployment in their neighborhoods. BGCMC creates “an ecosystem of opportunities” through well-designed programs centered around character and leadership development, education and academic support, career development, college and career readiness programs, health and wellness, arts and technology, sports and recreation and other activities.
“When kids walk into the club every day, they have an opportunity to choose the types of programs that they want to engage in,” Eagles said.
One key initiative is the “Power Hour” homework help program, which gives parents peace of mind that their children are receiving academic support. “The first thing that parents want to know is that we help them help their kids get their homework done,” Eagles said.
Other standout programs include “Project Lead,” an elaborate youth workforce development program offered by the club that begins with hiring high school freshmen and mentoring them through a four-year program with paid employment. “We pay them to be youth development professionals in our after-school program,” said Eagles.
Teenagers learn soft skills during their freshman year; sophomore year they’re focused on community service projects and engaged in professional development experiences; junior year they are given guidance on college and career readiness, including college applications, financial aid and more. For those not interested in pursuing college education, the club encourages them to “come up with a plan,” and devise a career path.
“SMART Girls” and “Passport to Manhood” are programs that help young people navigate social, cultural and emotional challenges. Additionally, the club collaborates with New Jersey Tutoring Corps for “very intensive” one-on-one math and literacy tutoring support.
According to data gathered through club surveys, the Red Bank location has served nearly 231 registered members, including in summer camps. The state caps the number of students served in the 4,000-square-foot facility at 70 at any given time.
“Caring deeply” about the students by supporting and partnering with families creates results. In Red Bank alone, Eagles noted, 97% of students performed at grade level in 2023.
About 96% of the club’s members in Red Bank are youth of color, 91% come from low-income households, and 74% are from single-parent homes: “These are single-parent households where a mom or a dad or sometimes even a grandparent are working hard at sometimes two or three jobs just to make ends meet,” Eagles said. “If you could put yourself in that situation for a second, and you have a kid, and that kid gets out of school every day at 3 o’clock, are you able to focus on your job thinking about ‘What’s my kid going to be up to?’ You’re not going to be able to focus on your job.”
Through private donations between 2021 and 2023, the club has provided over $25,000 in financial support to families, addressing critical needs like utilities, rent and food.
The club’s presence has a broader economic and public safety benefit for the community.
A national study by Boys & Girls Clubs of America found that for every dollar invested, the organization returns $9.60 in current and future earnings and cost savings. “The idea being that our liberal presence in the community of Red Bank provides a long-term economic return for those kids who are able to participate in our programs,” Eagles said.
The club has also invested nearly $1 million in Red Bank over the past three and a half years, with $700,000 going toward the salaries of 22 employees, 16 of whom are Red Bank residents.
Some council members expressed deep gratitude for the club’s work. Council member Ben Forest shared how the programs had positively impacted his own children. “Both of my kids took advantage of your programming,” Forest said during the presentation. It “really helped us as struggling parents.”
Forest further inquired about funding sources that have helped run the club. “It’s a pretty diversified funding stream,” Eagles said. As a state-licensed school childcare center, he said the club’s main funding source comes from government subsidies and grants, as well as private and family foundations, individual donors and special events.
Eagles also acknowledged partnering organizations in Red Bank like Two River Theater, Count Basie Center for the Arts, Project Write Now and Lunch Break, among others. “The club alone can’t move the needle” in the impact that it seeks in the lives of families, Eagles admitted. “But collectively, with all of our partners, we can have an outsized impact on what can become of these kids.”
The article originally appeared in the August 15 – 21, 2024 print edition of The Two River Times.
