​

​Afterschool STEM offers unique benefits including:
  • Extra exposure: Children spend less than 20% of their waking hours in school. Afterschool STEM can almost double the amount of time some students have to question, tinker, learn, and explore STEM topics.
  • Change of scene: Afterschool STEM engages students in hands-on, real-world projects. These programs offer innovative ways for students to practice STEM skills in an informal space. This makes STEM more accessible, more interesting, and helps to build fluency, much like immersing oneself in a new language.
  • A chance to follow their spark: High-quality afterschool STEM cultivates interest, builds real STEM skills, and helps students connect STEM to their lives and communities.
  • Opportunity for all: The wealthiest 20% of families spend almost seven times more on enrichment activities outside school for their children than do the poorest 20%. Afterschool STEM helps to close this gap by offering engaging learning programs to a diverse range of students.
Afterschool programs play a major role in providing meaningful science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) learning experiences to diverse groups of youth. These subjects help students succeed in school and prepare them for careers that are driving global economic growth.

​Nationwide, states and schools are engaging diverse partners like afterschool programs, libraries, museums, universities, and businesses to ensure that students have access to high-quality STEM education. By fully utilizing the hours outside of school, and taking an all hands on deck approach to maximize collective impact, we can ensure that our students are prepared for the future. Afterschool and summer programs spark learning and ignite interest by letting youth experiment with STEM ideas in real-world situations.
Hawai‘i Afterschool Alliance
University of Hawai‘i
1776 University Avenue, ​WA1-102
Honolulu, HI 96822
808-956-6515