HELL’S KITCHEN — A local elementary school is raising money to keep its science- and arts-focused after-school clubs going next year.
The P.S. 51 Elias Howe School, at 525 W. 44th St., recently launched a garden club, a science club, an engineering club and a robotics club, Parent Teacher Association President Sarah Ireland said.
Without funding, however, there’s a chance the clubs won’t be able to continue or expand next year, she said.
“P.S. 51 really teaches a more holistic way of being, which is why we want these clubs to do well,” Ireland explained. “And we want to be able to offer them to a large group of kids, not just a few kids.”
Students in the science club have been building model electric cars and learning about their benefits to the environment. Engineering club members recently designed parachutes meant to keep a water balloon from bursting after being dropped from the fifth floor of the school.
The gardening club, meanwhile, will get to plant fruits and vegetables in P.S. 51’s new rooftop garden for the first time this spring — but the school needs funds to sustain it and keep supplies like soil and seeds in stock.
“[The garden] gives them that sort of experiential learning, as opposed to just sitting around in a science classroom, listening to the teacher lecture,” Ireland said.
The school has been able to secure a few grants for the programs, but they won’t be enough to cover all of the clubs’ costs, she said.
Some of the funds will also go toward the school’s arts-focused after-school activities, including its fashion club, Ireland noted.
P.S. 51's CrowdRise campaign had raised just $311 of its $20,000 goal as of Wednesday she said.
Schools throughout the city are allotted a certain amount of funding to be used at its discretion, but P.S. 51 is hoping to raise the additional money to "sustain and expand" its "STEAM" (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Mathematics) programs, Principal Nancy Sing-Bock wrote in an email.
Funds are allocated based on the school's projected numbers, as well as the needs of their students, a city Department of Education spokesman noted.
The clubs have given P.S. 51 students an opportunity to learn more about subjects that interest them, Ireland said.
“I believe that education should be exciting,” Ireland said. “You’re not going to love everything, but if you have a couple of things that you’re really good at and you really love doing, that goes a really long way.”
