Building Strong Learners

Children’s After School Achievement (CASA) is a community after-school program of Hope College that promotes educational achievement among underrepresented children.

By way of intentional collaboration with local schools, we seek to build strong learners in the early years of their education, support their right to quality education, and promote equal access to the tools they need to be successful.

To do so, we offer one-on-one tutoring sessions to 110 elementary school students during the school year and individualized classroom instruction and enrichment to 85 students during a six-week summer program.  

What We Do

The primary emphasis at CASA is to address each child’s educational needs during our year-round programming sessions. Our staff and volunteers guide referred students in homework assistance, reading time and school subjects that are identified as challenging for each particular student. The year-round program features transportation to and from sessions, family and school communication, and monitoring and assessment of student progress.

How We Do It

Education is one of the keys to a future of promise, hope and fulfillment. At CASA, we enhance children’s lives by working with the schools to help our young students to improve their literacy skills, understand math concepts and become critical thinkers. We have grounded the program in relationships by ensuring that every child has a continuous one-on-one experience with a tutor who is ready to work with him or her each day of program in the academic year. In the summer, our certified teachers and teaching assistants lead classes that are intentionally small and designed to creatively enhance learning. We are committed to recognizing the value of children by tapping into their innumerable assets, honoring their strengths and expanding the possibilities in their future.

“I like CASA because I have a great tutor. CASA helps with my math and reading. My mom likes that I can come to CASA every week to get extra help.”
—3rd grader Alexis

History 

CASA has worked alongside schools and parents for more than three decades to strengthen the success of underrepresented elementary school students. In 1987, a group of Hollanders were troubled to learn that minority students were graduating from high school at a lower rate than their majority student counterparts. To their credit, the group took action and began a hometown program called CASA, recognizing that gathering up young children in their early school years could have great impact. Thus began the work of homework assistance, academic skill building, reading to and with, and being role models to each child. The program quickly grew with some 40 students and, in 1989, moved to Hope College, where it became a larger community outreach program. In a few short years, CASA has expanded to serve some 140 children annually.