TAMPA, Fla. -- As school starting plans have continued to change week-to-week, some local businesses and community centers are converting spaces to accommodate the growing demand for online learning.
TRIBE Seminole Heights, located at 6111 N. Central Avenue, is outfitting its space inside a century-old church for remote learning.
The e-learning camp will offer virtual school instruction as well as activities like movement, music, yoga, and art.
“We have this sort of dream team of moms who are willing to share their gifts with kids,” said Kristen Brown. “We have small classrooms available to work with a small groups of kids and we’re setting up the infrastructure here that will allow that to happen.”
According to Brown, TRIBE Seminole Heights can serve up to five students per grade.
Brown says 55 families have applied for their online learning program, many of them are working parents in need of scholarships to attend.
“The scholarship requests that we get, they say things like, ‘this will save my job if you can get me in.’ We hope we can save some lives,” said Brown.
Kraftologee, a Colombian coffee shop in Riverview, is transforming a creativity room for kids into a learning center.
Owner Martha Bermudez welcomes students, tutors and parents to use their cafe for a safe space for virtual school.
“A lot of kids don’t have access to the internet,” said owner Martha Bermudez. “We want to help. They can come here with their laptops and use our WiFi.”