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Hard work and perseverance paid dividends for La Conner Schools ahead of the Labor Day weekend.

District officials learned Friday that their application for a 21st Century Community Learning Center Grant to support the Braves Club after-school program has been approved. Past proposals had not been selected.

The award recommends funding of up to $450,000 annually for five years, for a total of $2.5 million, a district news release states.

A final funding level decision is expected in mid-September.

“After three years of applying,” school board president Susie Deyo told the Weekly News Friday afternoon, “we are thrilled to be awarded this grant as we look to take our Braves Club to the next level with more resources for our families and community.”

The funding comes at a most opportune time: The district has made painful budget cuts compelled by declining student enrollment and loss of COVID-19 pandemic emergency funding.

“This is great news for the district as we look for new revenue sources,” Deyo noted.

“We are quite excited about the grant, as you can imagine,” added former Braves Club Director Marlene Brenton, now a member of the administrative team.

School officials were guardedly optimistic through the spring and summer that this grant application would be successful. Superintendent Will Nelson said during the board’s June 12 study session that the district had contracted with the Northwest Educational Services District for assistance for this application cycle.

Nelson said then that if awarded the grant would increase the scope of the Braves Club to include more community resources and partnerships.

“It could be so huge,” said Andy Wheeler in June. He reported to board members at their summer retreat that the application left nothing to chance and no detail was spared. Upon completion, it covered more than 50 pages in length, he said. He has since retired as the district’s director of special programs.

The district’s news release states that the funding increases the capacity to offer a broad array of academic enrichment opportunities aligning with K-12 scholastic programs.

“La Conner,” the Sept. 1 release says, “will prioritize and implement school-based and community-based activities that lead to measurable student growth in reading and math, increased engagement, increased well-being and stronger family-school partnerships through the after-school Braves Club.”

The 21st Century Community Learning Center mission has for more than a decade provided after-school and expanded learning programming to enhance the academic well-being of Washington state students.

“We’re thrilled to have been selected from among these competitive applicants,” school officials said in last week’s prepared statement.

The Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction contracted with the American Institutes for Research to evaluate and support the statewide 21st Century Community Learning Centers program.

The final La Conner Schools grant award determination later this month will be based on what the release terms as “reasonable and necessary funds to manage the projects.”

The Braves Club focus is to provide elementary and middle school students with a positive, safe and fun place to be after school. The program offers enrichment, extracurricular, academic, vocational, athletic and community engagement opportunities that support the development and wellness of each student.