Chancellor Honored for Commitment to Afterschool Programs

OMAHA - In celebration of years of support for Omaha afterschool programming, University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO) Chancellor John Christensen was honored on Saturday, Oct. 1, at the annual Lights on Afterschool event hosted by the local non-profit Collective for Youth.

The surprise award was given to Christensen in front of more than 1,300 Omaha students at the Sapp Fieldhouse as well as several dozen educators, VIPs and afterschool program leaders.

The event marked the last Lights on Afterschool celebration Christensen will attend as chancellor, following his retirement announcement on Sept. 26.

The special recognition followed a set of awards given to fourt other advocates for afterschool education, including State Senators Heath Mello and Rick Kolowksi; Completely KIDS Executive Director Penny Parker; and Lavone Walker, an educator at Lewis and Clark Middle School.

This is the fourth year that Lights on Afterschool has hosted its annual celebration at UNO. The program, which is Nebraska's first, is part of nationwide initiative launched in 2000. The celebration was one of more than 8,000 held across the country.

In addition to recognizing local supporters of education, students in attendance had the chance to see demonstrations from local providers, including UNO departments like geology, biomechanics and biology, as well as book suppliers, the Omaha Police Department and others. In all, more than 30 unique providers were in attendance.

More information about Lights on Afterschool and Collective for Youth can be found at the Collective for Youth website.