The City of Refuge Point of Impact Ginikanwa Afterschool & summer Academy, purposes to address the needs of at-risk youth ages 10-14 within the City of Columbus & Franklin County. We service The Columbus Public School system, as well the various charter and private schools in our service area.

Ginikanwa is Swahili, and it poses the rhetorical question “What’s more important than a child”?  The leadership & staff of the Ginikanwa have always believed and can affirmatively demonstrate that nothing is more valuable than our children. Ginikanwa provides a comprehensive approach to academic growth and development through one to one assistance with home work, or special tutoring in the core subject areas. Or have professionals come in and share & work with our youth on a verity of topics. At Ginikanwa we feel that every moment is a teachable moment. . We also provide nutritious meal / snack, enrichment activities, prevention programs, recreation, socialization, and family involvement, and mentoring. The Ginikanwa program utilizes several research based prevention and education modalities including the Life Skills curriculum by Dr Gilbert Botvan. It is our goal for the youth that we touch will leave us different than they were when they came to us.

This is a free tutoring program offered to students from K-8th grade. Tutoring is performed in small groups, and in individual sessions. Students are helped with their homework, as well as helped in core areas where there is substandard performance. The tutoring sessions run throughout the school year. Students are also provided with a nutritious snack prior to the beginning their sessions.

The African-American Church Call to Buckle Up Project., AACCTBU is a seat belt safety campaign that targets African American families with the goal of decreasing the number of deaths and injuries among African Americans especially males, ages 16-24, caused by the lack of seat belt use.

This faith-based initiative is funded by the State of Ohio Governor’s Highway Safety Office and is expected to target the African-American faith based community statewide, through the African American Church. To date 34 churches in Columbus, Dayton, Toledo and Youngstown and surrounding counties that is in collaboration with the AACCTBU Project. Our goal is to implement effective strategies for reducing traffic crashes and fatalities, injury rates, drinking and driving, and to increase seatbelt usage in the African American communities. Do everything possible to get the message out; this may be through bulletin announcements, brochures, pulpit announcements, informing our youth at their targeted events, etc.

Each church selects a designated site coordinator who is responsible for attending meetings, completing monthly activity reports and surveys, as well as, integrating the AACCTBU project into his/her existing church & community programs. Attendance at “church partners” meetings is critical because training is provided and there is the opportunity to share and collaborate with partners from the other churches. Every year the AACCTBU sponsor statewide event like our Drivers Safety Youth Summit.   The goal of the summit is to empower youth to become leaders in their communities and to motivate them to make healthy decisions, particularly, when they are driving or riding as a passenger in a motor vehicle This is a high energy event where our student are represented form around the state.