Utah after-school programmes expand through innovative fundraising and community support

A growing statewide initiative in Utah is transforming after-school care for disadvantaged children, driven by community-funded programmes and high-profile concerts, with foundations led by former coach Ron McBride at the forefront of the expansion.

Tooele County’s federally designated Title I schools are joining a much broader after-school push that has spread well beyond one local grant round. By August 2026, Ron McBride was telling local media that his foundation’s school network had grown to 42 campuses across Utah, up from the 25 schools Fox 13 reported were sharing a major earlier distribution of concert-raised money. Locally, the Tooele Education Foundation says eight Title I schools will split $41,000 for new after-school provision. (fox13now.com)

That local award sits inside a much larger statewide funding drive. The Ogden School Foundation said on 11 September 2025 that McBride’s charity had awarded $400,000 across Utah, with $134,000 going to Ogden alone. A Canyons School District board summary published days earlier recorded that Union and Mount Jordan middle schools had received $25,000 for after-school work. McBride’s own foundation later said those 2025 grants backed 30 programmes in six districts, suggesting the Tooele award is part of an expanding model rather than a one-off donation. (ogdenschoolfoundation.org)

The model is built around the hours immediately after classes end. The foundation says its bridge programmes run from 3pm to 6pm, offering academic help, mentoring, clubs and meals at schools serving some of Utah’s most disadvantaged children. On its own figures, 64% of pupils in partner schools qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, 65% are students of colour and, at some campuses, as many as 23% experience homelessness. Utah Afterschool Network says more than 99,000 young people in the state are still unsupervised between 3pm and 6pm. (ronmcbridefoundation.org)

Teachers running existing programmes say the demand is already there. At Hillcrest Junior High, social studies teacher Gabe Smith told Fox 13 the after-school scheme serves 70 to 100 children a day and has more than 300 signed up across the year. One pupil, Bentley, described the difference bluntly: “Without this, I’d probably be laying on my bed right now not doing anything to be honest with you.” Smith said the school relies mainly on a federal grant that could be threatened by budget cuts, making private donations increasingly important for a campus with what he called “large refugee population” and an intake where “Almost 50% of our entire population is served with free and reduced lunches”. (fox13now.com)

Older examples from Jordan School District show what sustained backing can do. West Jordan Journal reported in 2020 that West Jordan Middle School had been receiving Ron McBride Foundation grants for three years and that a $15,000 gift from Tammy Sloan, the wife of former Utah Jazz coach Jerry Sloan, had helped fund the latest one. Site co-ordinator Frandsen said the money expanded the school’s offer from eight enrichment activities six years earlier to about 23, while also helping provide a healthy afternoon snack. “The Ron McBride Foundation really saved the day,” he said, adding that the aim was to turn the school into “a community center here after school”. (westjordanjournal.com)

The spread of funded schools shows how unevenly the money is being deployed and where organisers believe need is sharpest. Ogden’s share was earmarked for Ben Lomond High School, Ogden High School, Highland Junior High, Lincoln Elementary, East Ridge Elementary, Mound Fort Junior High School, Shadow Valley Elementary, George Washington High Eagles, OTECH High School and Polk School, according to the Ogden School Foundation. In Canyons, district officials singled out just two middle schools in their September 2025 board update. McBride’s foundation says its 2025 reach also included schools in Salt Lake City, Granite, Jordan and Murray. (ogdenschoolfoundation.org)

A striking part of the effort is how much of the money now comes from live entertainment rather than traditional education budgets. Fox 13 reported that a sold-out Ryan Bingham show at The Complex, where Bingham waived his fee and sales were directed to the foundation, helped generate $320,000 for schools in Ogden, Granite, Jordan, Canyons and Murray. A separate Fox 13 report said the following year’s Ella Langley benefit was expected to raise about $100,000 for nearly 30 Title I schools, with demand so high that organisers moved it outdoors and sold nearly 4,000 tickets. By August 2026, Hoodline reported that McBride was promoting a third annual concert, this time headlined by The Head and the Heart, as the charity tried to keep widening its reach. (fox13now.com)

McBride’s own profile helps explain why donors keep showing up. Hoodline noted that he went 88-63 at the University of Utah, won two conference titles and ended a 25-year bowl drought before later finishing his Division I head-coaching career with a 131-101 record and more than 70 players who reached the NFL. Fox 13 said he started the foundation about a decade ago after retiring from coaching, and he has made clear that the fundraising drive is not slowing. “Thankfully, we have a lot of people in this community that care about our young people, and they’re willing to support this project,” he said. Even after one of the biggest recent payouts, he was already looking ahead: “So, how do you top it next year? We’re already working on it.” (hoodline.com)