For Kids Only Afterschool Names Ricky Baez New District Director

For Kids Only Afterschool (FKO) is proud to announce and welcome Ricky Baez as the new District Director for its five sites in Chelsea, Revere, and Winthrop that offer year-round afterschool, school vacation week, and summer programming. In this role, Mr. Baez will be responsible for overseeing a team of five Site Directors who manage a daily staff of more than 30 educators and 300 students each day.  He will coach, mentor and develop FKO’s educators; partner with schools, funders, families, and community organizations; and ensure compliance with best practices and state licensing standards for programs to ensure that youth (5 to 14 years of age) have access to high quality OST services. Mr. Baez shares FKO’s commitment to equity and inclusion of all youth and will guide programs toward excellence in delivering engaging enrichment, social-emotional learning, and culturally responsive services. Mr. Baez will also serve on FKO’s Development Team for the organization’s new capital renovation project in Winthrop. Once construction is complete in 2020, Mr. Baez will oversee a smooth transition for Winthrop children and families into a new, state-of-the art home for FKO afterschool!

Ricky Baez holds a Bachelor’s in Elementary Education and brings more than 20 years of experience in the public and private sectors to this new position. Multi-lingual, he speaks English, Spanish, and Portuguese fluently and has limited experience with Italian, Creole and American Sign Language. In addition to growing up in afterschool programs, Mr. Baez previously worked in the field for many years, ultimately serving as an Afterschool Director with the YMCA of Greater Boston. Most recently, he was the Community School Coordinator at the Horace Mann Laboratory School in Salem.  He is excited to return to a role that allows him to focus on his passion of opening doors and expanding knowledge for children through hands-on, real world learning experiences in out-of-school time settings.

“I am thrilled to have Ricky join the FKO team to share his excitement and enthusiasm for helping children to explore new interests with our programs,” says Executive Director Deborah Kneeland Keegan. “His dedication to creating inclusive out-of-school time environments and promoting equity will be a tremendous asset to our staff, students, and families.”

For 35 years, For Kids Only Afterschool (FKO) has been driven by the mission to help children love, learn and grow through safe and enriching afterschool and summer programming.  Year-round, high-quality programming is provided at 18 program sites in five communities north of Boston through school and community partnerships.