CASA CHIRILAGUA

Elementary Programs - From January to June of 2025, Kids Club offered in-person afterschool programming for students in grades 1st through 5th, providing academic support and extracurricular activities three times per week. A total of 37 students were enrolled in the program, benefiting from structured, personalized learning experiences designed to meet their academic and emotional development needs. The core academic support provided to students included reading and math tutoring three times a week, with a focus on helping students improve in areas where they faced learning deficits. In addition to these academic sessions, social-emotional development was an integral part of the program. Students engage in social-emotional learning (SEL) activities twice a week, equipping them with essential skills for managing emotions, building healthy relationships, and making responsible decisions. Kids Club also prioritized physical activity and creativity by offering a variety of activities such as physical movement, arts, dance, and team-building exercises. Kids Club is able to have Inspira Dance Partner with our students to teach them break dancing classes once a week. HEARD Nova also partnered with us to lead the Kids in visual arts and craft learning once a week. These activities were designed to foster both physical health and social interaction, contributing to the holistic development of each student. In the spring of 2025, there were multiple field trips. These outings helped expose students to new environments and learning opportunities, complementing the program's academic and enrichment activities. During the summer months, from June 30th to July 18th, 2025, Kids Club hosted its STEM Code Rising Summer Camp, which operated five days a week. 25 students participated in the camp, where they engaged in hands-on learning focused on coding and media skills. The camp aimed to nurture curiosity, problem-solving skills, and critical thinking. As part of our summer camp, we provided weekly field trips on Fridays. These trips provided students with immersive learning experiences and exposure to exciting career possibilities, including Amazon headquarters. These visits allowed students to witness real-world applications of STEM concepts, inspiring them to think about their futures and the broad range of career paths available to them. In the second half of 2025, from August to December, the Kids Club program continued to offer in-person afterschool sessions, with 32 students enrolled three days per week. The fall programming continued a comprehensive approach to student development, combining academic support, physical activity and movement activities as well as social and emotional learning. We also launched a new curriculum, Cultured Kids, which builds social and emotional learning skills. In the Fall, students engaged in the Identity and Empathy Units, including activities such as interactive read aloud, role plays, and creative art projects. A key component of the programming was Bible-based character development lessons which aligned with the Cultured Kids Units. Students explored and acted out bible stories to better understand Christian identity in and how we are called as Christians to live with empathy.

Youth Programs - Teens Club is a program offered to create a safe environment for middle school youth to develop stronger academic, social, and leadership skills. From January to May 2025, the middle school after school program, Teens Club, was offered to 20 students in 6th-8th grade. Twice a week, the students were welcomed to Casa Chirilagua for Teens Club on Tuesday and Thursday evenings for structured activities. This weekly session for 1.5 hours would include a study hall, community building games and choice time activities. Throughout all three of these components, the students participated in physical activities, received homework help, and participated in projects to discover their interests and strengths. Some of the choice time activities included gardening, chess, art, board/card games, and soccer. We brought in teachers, volunteers, partners, or staff to lead each component. From June 30th- July 18th, 12 students enrolled in our summer program meeting for 3 hours on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, with 4-hour meetings on Fridays for field trips. We partnered with the organization Code Rising who provided STEM related learning opportunities. On the 25th of July we had 5 middle and high schoolers attend a kayaking excursion with the Four Mile Run Conservancy. From September to December 2025, Teens Club started again with the school year, being offered Tuesdays and Thursdays from 3:30p-5:30p. The program had 25 students enrolled. During their program time frame included community building, academic support and a weekly book club meeting with the book The First Rule of Punk by Celia Perez using curriculum from Cultured Kids. Book club incorporated faith-based elements and there were bi-weekly Bible studies on book club "off" days. The book club supported students in reading comprehension, vocabulary, personal reflection, artistic expression, and Social Emotional Learning. The Cultured Kids curriculum was centered around 4 pillars of Identity, Empathy, Belonging, and Global Citizenship. Study hall followed book club with structured time to complete homework or grade level academic work and check in with adults on school related challenges (e.g. specific classes or communication with teachers). In the Fall, Casa Chirilagua partnered with Code Rising for 6 weeks to provide STEM programming with brief lessons and hands on activities facilitated by Dominion Energy and Titan Robotics. This occurred on Thursdays from 4:30-5:30. Casa to Career is a program created for high school students to build an awareness of post-high school pathways and access support to discovering and pursuing post-high school goals for college and career. From January to June 2025, Casa to Career was offered to 12 students in 9th-12th grade on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 5:30pm-7:00pm. Once a week, the students come for structured activities. These weekly sessions for 1.5 hours include academic support, group community building games, and participation in large and small group Bible studies. Throughout all three of these components, the students participated in dynamic icebreakers, received homework help, and participated in activities to understand what options they have for their future. We finished the school year with a fun field trip to laser tag and a closing Bible study in Crystal City over a shared meal. From June 30th- July 18th, 9 high school students enrolled in our summer program meeting for 3 hours on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, with 4-hour meetings on Fridays for field trips. We partnered with the organization Code Rising who provided STEM related learning opportunities. The high schoolers received a learning stipend and MacBook to keep after their 3 weeks of co-working, resume building, coding, career panels/discussions, communications projects, and culminating environment-based project commissioned by the City of Alexandria. From September to December 2025, Tuesday and Thursday night programming was offered to the 20 students enrolled in Casa to Career for the 2024-2025 school year. Casa to Career was offered twice a week from 5:30pm-7:15pm for 1.75 hours. On Tuesday evenings students came for structured activities including community building time, homework tutoring and sessions for students based on their career interests, which included guest speakers and workshops. On Thursday evenings, students came for small group Bible studies led by staff and volunteers with a homework tutoring element in the second half of the evening. The Bible studies followed our Cultured Kids themes of Identity, Empathy, Belonging, and Global Citizenship using the book Three Big Questions That Shape Your Future by Kara Powell, Kristel Acevedo, and Brad M. Griffin. Casa Chirilagua also partnered with Move2Learn for a couple of Boxercise sessions and one field trip to tour the D.C. United offices, field, and engage in a career panel with D.C. United staff.