'The Loop' offers St. Paul youth free after school transportation
New approach to youth transportation in St. Paul
St. Paul Public Library, Parks and Recreation launch "The Loop", a collaborative youth transportation initiative.
ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - Getting students where they want to go after school can often be a game with many moving parts.
‘It's been a community ask of ‘how I can get my young person from a Rec Center to a different nonprofit in a safe way?’ So, this is a very creative way to do that," says Andy Rodriguez, Director of Saint Paul Parks and Recreation.
FOX 9 rode along with Rodriguez and youth leader, Kao Yang, on the brand-new set of wheels named "The Loop." It’s so new, not many families in the Rondo and Frogtown community know it's available to them for free now.
"It's a fun thing," says Yang.
Who can ride?
What they're saying:
Similar to a school bus, this 15-passenger van is available for 10-18-year-olds in St. Paul, Mondays through Thursdays from 3-8 p.m. The Loop makes six different stops at libraries, recreation centers, nonprofits, all in an effort to expand the programs students can get to after school and in this summer.
"I think providing our young people a multitude of options to transport themselves around the city is super important, right? If you want to get from a rec center to a library, the walkability might not be there, or parents may not feel it's safe, but this is another kind of city-led option that provides that opportunity for a young person to get from A to B," says Rodriguez.
"I just don't want the barrier of a busy road or a bit of a hike to be the thing that keeps them from getting what they want," says Loop manager, Kali Freeman.
As manager for The Loop, Freeman explains the $1.5 million after-school community learning grant comes from the Minnesota Department of Education. In addition to physically connecting kids with places they want to get to, the goal is to increase access to culturally-affirming after-school community learning opportunities that specifically support the academic and social and emotional well-being of young people and their families.
Network for the Development of Children of African Descent and Irreducible Grace Foundation Black Youth Healing Arts Center are just a couple of the community partners.
"If our children's families feel supported, and we are also supporting their kids, that's a loop of care right there," says Freeman.
For now, Yang and others are hopeful the word will spread to more parents to sign permission forms, and for kids to take a seat and get where they need to go.
"This is very important," says Yang. "When I was younger, we didn't really have nothing like this, and now that we have something like this, you know, this is a good thing to give back to the community that made me who I am."
What you can do:
More information can be found here.