Last spring, when the Delta Family YMCA closed the doors of its location on O’Hara Avenue along with its childcare at some of the Oakley school sites, many families were left with limited options. But now, thanks to the Aim-High organization, parents can find solutions to their before-and-after school care right here in town.

“When the Y bailed on the daycare programs, I contacted the gal at Aim-High to see if there was something we could do to broker a deal for our families who were looking for care for their children,” said Oakley School Superintendent Rick Rogers.

Aim-High Child Care Center is a nonprofit corporation that provides before-and-after school care for students in grades K-5. Following its successful establishment of sites in the Brentwood Union School District, the Aim-High group had long considered moving into the Oakley area, but lacked the demand to justify its own facility. Last year, in an effort to accommodate families in Oakley who wanted to participate, Aim-High bused a handful of students from Iron House Elementary to the Brentwood locations.

Since last month, Aim-High has been renting a classroom at Gehringer Elementary and is busing additional students from Vintage, Laurel and Iron House schools to the Gehringer site.

What the program will provide, according to Sondra Simpson, executive director of Aim-High, is a continuity and reliability parents can count on.

“We’ve been 16 years in Brentwood and have been on campus at their various elementary schools and have great success,” said Simpson. “We’ve just started the new school year here in Oakley, but so far, so good. Parents seem to be very happy with our program and like our approach. Ours is an enrichment program with lots of structure, and the parents and the kids like that. We’re happy to be here.”

If successful, the Oakley Aim-High program might look to expand their reach in a more permanent way. “Oh absolutely,” said Simpson. “Right now we have about 30 students, and we hope that it’s a real success and that it continues to grow. We would love to have a permanent home in Oakley.”

Rogers agreed. “It looks like it is going to be a good fit; we’ll see how it goes,” he said. “We’re all about serving our families, and if this is something that they want, we’ll do what we can to help them expand.”

Aim-High centers are open Mondays through Fridays from 6:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. For more information, call 925-625-7087.