Two years ago, the news vans were parking outside of Maplewood Middle School to capture the disruptions caused by school children who had nowhere to go once that final bell was rung. The Maplewood Memorial Library across the street was so overwhelmed with unsupervised children that it temporarily—and controversially—closed its doors after school.

Two years later, MMS after school is a peaceful scene. Up to 140 kids who were previously at loose ends after school are now studying Latin, training to run 5K races, knitting, cooking, learning crime scene investigation skills and more.

The change is the result of a $100,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Justice to provide after-school activities to the children. 

On December 15, MMS educator Kevin Mason presented an update on the new after-school programs, known as MMS Plus, to the Township Committee along with Principal Jeff Truppo and three students who have participated in the MMS Plus program. The program is overseen by YouthNet which is administering the Department of Justice grant.

YouthNet executive director Diane Malloy (who has three children either in the South Orange/Maplewood School District or graduated from it) said this was a good use of a Department of Justice grant—a case where the Federal government was being proactive. Instead of waiting for children to get involved in or be victimized by criminal behavior, the government was providing activities to keep them out of trouble and even provide them with supplemental education and opportunities.

Principal Truppo explained that the program is two-pronged: providing support (such as tutoring) and enrichment (exposing the children to new experiences and subjects such as Latin). Malloy said that MMS Plus is an attempt to create a model program that can be replicated elsewhere.

Programs include cooking, poetry, the Model UN club (students actually visit the United Nations in the Spring), 5K, adventurers, basketball, broadcasting, knitting, crime scene investigation, ecology, mixed martial arts, double dutch, Latin and more.

The after-school programs are a collaborative effort between Maplewood Middle School, the Hub (a local nonprofit that provides counseling services), the Maplewood Department of Recreation and YouthNet.

MMS Plus also runs a five-day-per-week, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. program through the summer. 

After the presentation to the Township Committee, Committeewoman Kathy Leventhal gave credit to Deputy Mayor Fred Profeta, who helped obtain the grant. "This is your baby," said Leventhal.

But what will happen when the grant runs out?

"This grant was for piloting the program," said Malloy. "We hope to prove how valuable these programs are and extend our funding."