Students and families of three local afterschool programs celebrated their hard work over the year with a family fun festival held recently.

The festival was held May 9 at the Beaufort Ed Tech Center for students that participate in the afterschool programs at Chocowinity Middle School, John Small Elementary School and P.S. Jones Middle School, as well as their families. The event was possible through a partnership between Cornerstone Community Learning Center, a nonprofit under the Cornerstone Family Worship Center umbrella, and Beaufort County Schools, said Alida Sawyer, Cornerstone Community Learning Center grant director.

The festival featured an array of recreational activities and games for the children and families to participate in, including bounce houses, face-painting, carnival games, food like hot dogs, popcorn and funnel cakes and a basketball goal, said Lisa Reid, public relations and special event planner for the Center. Cornerstone usually hosts a friends and family day each year, but this year, Bishop James McIntyre of Cornerstone thought it would be nice to extend the event to the afterschool programs and host the event in the middle of town so those with transportation difficulties could attend, Reid said.

“We incorporated everything and made the students and families the honorees,” Reid said. “(McIntyre) wanted the kids to be celebrated for all their hard work. He wanted to make it really festive.”

Sawyer said the festival was held as part of a Department of Public Instruction grant that Michelle Oros, BCS grant writer and McIntyre helped write. The grant called for partnership with a local nonprofit — Cornerstone — and an activity where parents could come together with students and Cornerstone for the sake of having some informal fun time, Sawyer said.

The students in the program worked Monday through Thursday for two hours each day for about 10 weeks to better their skills in reading and math, Sawyer said. The program included at-risk students being assessed and given an individualized tutoring program, which included informal testing and use of an educational computer program called iReady. The program allowed each student to work at their own pace and level and hone skills they needed to work on, Sawyer said.

“It was a really great individualized program for students,” Sawyer said. “I think it’s a wonderful program. We’re very structured, and we have a lot of wonderful teachers, who work with students during the day and are able to work with them in the afternoon again, and they know each student’s needs. The festival was a culmination of the year.”

Sawyer said the program is a two to three-year program. Next year, the two organizations hope to have the students present what they work on during the afterschool program in order to showcase their progress to their parents, Sawyer said.

Cornerstone Community Learning Center is located at 1918 W. 5^th St. in Washington.