Supporting the goals and ideals of "Lights On Afterschool!", a national celebration of after-school programs.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. Lowey), who is the sponsor of this resolution.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I might consume to close for our side.

Again, I want to commend the gentlewoman from New York for her introduction of this resolution. I rise in support of H. Con. Res. 478, a resolution supporting the goals and ideals of Lights on Afterschool!, a national celebration of after-school programs.

Lights on Afterschool! is a project of the Afterschool Alliance. As many of you may know, the Afterschool Alliance is a nonprofit organization dedicated to raising awareness of the importance of after- school programs for all children. The Alliance was created to conduct this public awareness and advocacy work and to serve as a national voice for after-school programs.

Consistent with the work of the Alliance, they have created the Lights on Afterschool! projects that will host nationwide celebrations this October. These celebrations are a way of highlighting and bringing attention to the importance of after-school programs.

I think every single Member of Congress here can speak to the importance of these programs. I myself have seen the important and necessary role that after-school plays, especially in the everyday lives of working families. Nationwide, 14.3 million children take care of themselves after the school day ends. Of these, 6.5 million children are in after-school programs.

We all know that these programs provide not only a place for young people to be after school but also provide a tremendous benefit. Some of us have probably even visited after-school programs in our district. We appreciate the role that they have played and will continue to play in providing a safe place for our youth to be after school and provide them with the opportunity to grow and to learn.

Every statistic that you can look at and find generally depicts the fact that when young people get in trouble the most it is when they are without supervision, have nothing meaningful to do and are left to their own environs.

As a matter of fact, my parents used to say it differently. They used to say that an idle mind is the devil's workshop. I guess what they really meant was that if young people did not have something created for them to do, that we would create our own things, and oftentimes those things would not be in the best interests not only of our individual development but not in the best interests of the communities where we were.

So when the gentlewoman from New York introduces such a resolution, she is really doing all of America a great favor by helping us to remember that if we do not provide positive things for young people to do, oftentimes they will create the negative. So I thank Mrs. Lowey for her introduction of this resolution and strongly support it.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding me time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H. Con. Res. 478 to highlight the goals of the seventh annual Lights on Afterschool! celebration. This event organized by the Afterschool Alliance is the only national celebration of after-school programs and the important role they play in the lives of children, families and communities.

On October 12, more than 1 million Americans, representing thousands of after-school initiatives across the country, including more than 100 programs in my home State of New York, are expected to open their doors to parents, neighbors, business leaders and elected officials to showcase their accomplishments.

In my own district, events will take place in Tarrytown, White Plains, and Yonkers, and more programs are registering each day.

While there is growing enthusiasm for this year's Lights On celebration, we need more than just one day a year to highlight the importance of after-school programs. That is why I joined with Representatives Ros-Lehtinen and Kildee to form the bipartisan Congressional Afterschool Caucus last year. Our mission is simple: to build support for these programs within Congress and to translate that support into sufficient funding to meet the growing demand for after- school initiatives.

For years, we have known that what our kids do after school can have as great an impact as what they do in school.

In 1996, from my seat on the Appropriations Committee, I helped create the 21st Century Community Learning Centers, the first-ever Federal after-school initiative.

Since then, I have watched it grow from a million dollar demonstration project to a billion dollar permanent program today, because there is astonishing demand and tremendous unmet need for it.

According to a study conducted by the Afterschool Alliance, 40 percent of middle school children, the age when kids are most vulnerable to engaging in dangerous activities, are unsupervised for a good portion of the day. Parents are crying out for safe, structured environments where their kids can learn and play, make friends and develop new interests. Yet Congress is not doing what it should to ensure that our kids are safe and engaged while their parents are at work.

The Congressional Afterschool Caucus and the Lights On celebration will focus on changing that. We will share the lessens we have learned to make sure after-school does not become an afterthought in our Federal education priorities.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this resolution, to join the Caucus, to fight tooth and nail for every dollar available so that kids and their parents have access to these desperately needed programs.

I thank you, I thank my colleague from New York.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 478) supporting the goals and ideals of ``Lights On Afterschool!'', a national celebration of after-school programs.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks on H. Con. Res. 478.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H. Con. Res. 478, offered by my colleague, the gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. Lowey). This resolution seeks to support the goals and the ideals of Lights on Afterschool!, a national celebration of after-school programs. This year's Lights on Afterschool! rally, which takes place on October 12, 2006, is expected to include more than 7,000 events in the United States and at military bases around the world. This event is aimed at bringing attention to the need for high-quality after-school programs that keep kids safe, help working families, and improve academic achievement.

I support this resolution because after-school programs are an important part of many American's student lives. High-quality after- school programs provide safe, challenging and fun learning experiences that help children and youth develop their social, emotional, physical, cultural and academic skills.

I am pleased that we are able to bring attention to the critical importance of after-school programs. I commend the communities across the Nation that engage in innovative after-school programs and activities and ensure that the doors stay open and the lights stay on for all children after school.

This resolution is simple and straight forward. It supports the goals and ideals of Lights on Afterschool!, a nationwide celebration of after-school programs.

I commend my colleague, Mrs. Lowey, for her leadership in authoring H. Con. Res. 478. I urge my colleagues to support it.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time at this moment. Once again, I would like to commend my colleague Mrs. Lowey for bringing this important resolution to the floor, and I thank my colleague Mr. Davis for expounding upon the very need for it, and with that, Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to day in support of H. Con. Res. 478, supporting the goals

and ideals of the Lights On Afterschool! program. According to the Afterschool Alliance's survey, 14.3 million children are left alone and unsupervised after school. Lights On provides children with a safe place to go after school and promotes healthy opportunities for growth and learning.

I believe that after school programs provide vital services to our youth and we must make a commitment to continue to fund these programs. Communities and schools can help by promoting after-school programs that engage teenagers in a thoughtful and safe manner. Encouraging high school students to join after-school clubs, sports teams, and band or chorus also gives teenagers purposeful extra-curricular activities that diminish their chances of causing trouble in their community.

Our children deserve the very best chance to succeed in a turbulent global community, a world where economic competitors grow more numerous and powerful everyday. To ensure American leadership in the future, children today must be afforded comprehensive education and enrichment through well-funded schools and after-school activities.

There are many after school programs that are benefiting the children of my district. The Trenton After School Program has been serving our community for over 20 years. It not only provides our children with a safe place to go after school, but also provides culturally enriching programs including arts education.

Lights On provides children with fun, educational, and entertaining activities when the school day ends. I am proud to rise in support of this resolution.