With Digital Literacy, STEAM and Youth Leadership as focus areas, Quest Zone will expand its reach in Extended Day offerings with afterschool programs at each of Aiken County’s 21 elementary and 11 middle schools in the 2019-2020 school year.
“We have a history of strong partnerships for after school care with a number of area providers,” Aiken County’s Superintendent Dr. Sean Alford commented. “Being able to offer all families reliable, high-quality childcare at a reasonable price has been our overarching goal of a district-wide Extended Day Program.”
Quest Zone, operated by The Sunshine House, has been a trusted partner in providing afterschool care in many Aiken County schools for more than a decade. Since 2017, Quest Zone and Prime Time, operated by The Family Y, have been the district’s sole providers for Extended Day services throughout the district, with each offering programs at 10 elementary schools. In the last year, Quest Zone began offering Extended Day at several middle schools.
In an effort to enhance consistency of Extended Day offerings and move to a single provider, a formal Request For Proposals (RFP) was initiated by the District. The current RFP sourcing method utilized for competitive bidding in Aiken County Public Schools has been in use for more than 20 years. Three interested providers, including The Sunshine House/QuestZone, AlphaBest, and The Family Y/PrimeTime, submitted proposals. Evaluation criteria for this RFP included the degree of capability of performing the specified services, experience and expertise in providing the services, and pricing. The seven-member RFP panel was comprised of two elementary school principals, a middle school principal, and four district-level administrators.
At its regularly scheduled meeting on Tuesday, March 26, Aiken’s School Board approved the recommendation to award the contract to the highest ranked offer. Notification to the interested three providers followed to notify each of the intent to award the contract to Quest Zone and of the Bidder’s Right to Protest the “Intent to Award” before April 8, 2019.
While price was not the single determining factor for the selection of Quest Zone, the regular fees for student participants in Quest Zone for the 2019-20 school year, of $54 per week, are comparable to the existing fee structure of Quest Zone currently, as well as the cost for similar programs. A lower cost of $44 per week is available to students eligible for a free or reduced lunch. In addition to lower weekly rates, 32 scholarships are available for students based on financial need.
The Quest Zone is open after school until 6:00 p.m., and offers Extended Care on Early Dismissal Days. The Quest Summer Camp will also be available at several schools.
“Quest Zone prides itself on delivering high-quality programs and working closely with school principals to focus on the things that matter most in each student’s life,” Theresa Tobin-Richardson, Regional Director of The Quest Zone commented. “We are honored to be the afterschool provider for Aiken County Public Schools.”
True to its name, Quest Zone is designed around interactive Zones, where students choose which Zones to participate in and activities change daily to keep things fresh and exciting.
Some of their most popular Zones are:
- STEM: By working on projects that bring STEM to life, students are exposed to cutting-edge concepts essential for tomorrow’s careers!
- Making Your Mark: Students work in small groups and as part of a team to develop essential social skills.
- Expressing Yourself: A literacy zone, which allows students to share ideas and stories through writing, poems, songs, word searches and more.
- Making it Happen: Students focus on inquiry and creative problem solving by using their five senses.
- Homework: Students collaborate with Quest Zone teachers to receive homework assistance to ace their homework before going home.
Registration for the Quest Zone Summer Camp and the fall semester are complimentary. Additional information about The Quest Zone’s Afterschool Program and Summer Camp is coming soon and is available online at thequestzone.com.
LINK TO DISTRICT PRESS RELEASE: 2019 PR EXTENDED DAY QUEST ZONE