21st Century
Salem County Vocational
21st Century Community Learning Center Program
The Salem County Vocational 21st Century Community Learning Center (21st CCLC) Program provides high-quality after-school and summer learning opportunities for students in grades 4–12 from the Borough of Penns Grove and Carneys Point Township, NJ. Our program serves 210 students across three convenient sites:
- Paul W. Carlton Elementary School
- Penns Grove Middle School
- Penns Grove High School
A Year-Round Commitment to Student Success
The program begins in September and runs throughout the entire school year. We also offer a four-week summer program at the Salem County Vocational Technical High School, ensuring students stay engaged academically and socially beyond the traditional school calendar.
Engaging, Enriching, and Future-Focused
Our summer experience is designed to be fun, hands-on, and career exploration-based, while still incorporating the essential academic components needed to prevent summer learning loss. Through dynamic activities, community partnerships, and personalized support, we help students build confidence, discover new interests, and prepare for future opportunities.
The Salem County Vocational 21st CCLC program will provide a wide array of activities that include academic remediation, academic enrichment, cultural and artistic programs, positive youth development activities, health, nutrition, fitness and physical activities, career exploration and parental and community involvement. The program is offered to students who attend school in the Penns Grove-Carneys Point School Regional District and is supported through a robust coalition of collaborators that includes the Appel Farms Art and Music Center, The Food Bank of South Jersey, Salem County Vocational Technical Post-Secondary Education, and Salem County Special Services Daretown Campus.
The Salem County Vocational 21st CCLC has a positive impact on our children through an important transitional stage in their life with the goal of helping them to become productive citizens and prepare for college, work, and life in the 21st Century.
Our Program
The Salem County Vocational 21st Century Community Learning Center (21st CCLC) Program extends the school day and year by integrating standards-based academic content into high-quality after-school instruction. Through rigorous remediation and targeted academic support, we strengthen foundational skills, deepen critical thinking, and support overall student success.
Our program was developed in response to significant socioeconomic challenges and academic performance indicators within our community. By offering structured, enriching learning opportunities beyond the traditional school day, we work to improve academic achievement, attendance, behavior, and family engagement.
A key component of our program is Pathways to Possibilities through career exploration, led by certified teachers from the Salem County Vocational Technical School District. Students are introduced to hands-on, career-focused learning experiences across multiple vocational pathways—helping them discover interests, build real-world skills, and envision future opportunities.
Each program site also features a dynamic Imagination and Arts Lab that brings learning to life. Using a project-based approach, students create artistic representations of academic content to stay engaged and excited about learning. Certified teachers and Artists-in-Residence work together to reinforce core curriculum areas such as English Language Arts and Mathematics through music, dance, theater, and visual arts.
These innovative, evidence-based enrichment experiences not only deepen understanding but also inspire creativity, confidence, and a passion for learning.
Mission Statement
The mission of the Salem County Vocational 21st Century Community Learning Centers Salem County Achievers After School Program is to provide a safe, clean, positive and supportive learning environment in which all students can successfully develop socially, emotionally and academically into lifelong learners and responsible, productive citizens. Whereby providing a comprehensive afterschool learning environment that provides opportunities for all students to achieve success through creative activities that honor diversity and the integration of the Common Core State Standards and through the pathways of the Visual and Performing Arts.
Goals of 21st CCLC Program
- Our goal as the 21st Century Career Exploration After School Program is to bring a transformational moment educationally, emotionally, and personally to every child so they learn more about the arts.
- Ensure children have fair, equal, and significant opportunities to obtain high quality education through a creative art integrated activity.
- Reach, at a minimum, proficiency on challenging state standards & assessments.
Enrichment Activities We Offer
- Circuit Squad (Robotics)
- Checkmate Champs (Chess)
- Pixel Pros (Coding)
- Arts in Newspaper Club (Literacy)
- Kids Around The Worlds (Cultural Awareness & ESL)
- Media Production (Engineering and the Arts)
- Film Club (Readers Theater)
- Games in the Arts
- Poetry (Orators)
- Brick By Brian (Legos & Architecture)
Related Links
Please visit any one of these sites for more information about the 21st Century Program.
21st CCLC Sites
- Paul W. Carlton Elementary School
- Penns Grove Middle School
- Penns Grove High School
Times of Service
- School Year
Monday – Friday ~ 2:30 – 5:30 pm - Summer
Monday – Thursday ~ 8:30 – 2:00 pm
Partners
- Appel Farms Art and Music Center
- Salem County Vocational Technical School District
- Salem County Special Services School District
- Food Bank of South Jersey
# Students Served
210
# Adults Served
100
Final Evaluation
View or download the 2024-25 Final Evaluation PDF.
