Travelers Rest Christian Academy is receiving a total of $30,000 from the city of Vicksburg following action by the Board of Mayor and Aldermen to help the school’s afterschool tutoring program for preschool and elementary school children.

The board on Monday approved $10,000 in American Recovery Plan Act (ARPA) funds to help support the program during 2022 and $20,000 from its general fund to help continue the program through 2023 and 2024.

The $20,000 will be paid out in increments of $10,000 a year during 2023 and 2024 as long as Travelers Rest provides proof of matching funds.

Under state law, the city is allowed to spend money from its general fund to match any other funds for purposes of supporting social and community service programs.

“We are very appreciative of the funds,” Travelers Rest Director Janet Watts said.

She said the afterschool program will provide academic programs in math and reading for grades K through fourth grade this school year and fifth and sixth grades will be added in the following years.

“We do this for a lot of the underserved organizations in the community and the ARPA money was designed and set down for that,” Mayor George Flaggs Jr. said. “If you all don’t have an educated workforce any better than you have now you won’t have any Vicksburg.”

Flaggs said the residents are the most important commodity of any government and economy “and we have to be prepared.

“These children have got to be able to read going forward and we’ve got to be able to work with them,” he added. “I’m proud of the work that we do. Education will impact your life more than anything else; even the church. It’s important.”