City officials will open two district parks to child care programs aimed at helping parents weather the impact of Furlough Fridays.

Mayor Mufi Hannemann announced yesterday that the YMCA and Kamaaina Kids will administer all-day child care programs on Fridays at Manoa District Park and Käneohe District Park, respectively. The two parks add a new option for parents seeking alternatives to school on Furlough Fridays.

Hannemann emphasizes that scheduled activities at the parks will not be affected.

"We're looking at this as an opportunity to help our friends in state government who are facing a difficult situation," Hannemann said. "We want to provide an alternative for parents ... to care for their children."

Under terms of an agreement between the state and the Hawaii State Teachers Association, public school teachers will take the first of 17 mandatory furlough days on Friday, leaving more than 170,000 students without classes to attend.

The situation has left thousands of parents scrambling to find affordable child care programs for their younger children or make other arrangements. Some parents have discussed renting classrooms and paying teachers out of pocket to minimize the impact of the furloughs on their children's education.

The YMCA and Kamaaina Kids programs will be available to children from kindergarten to sixth grade starting Friday.

Both programs will run from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. and will include educational and recreational components at a cost of $25 per day. (Food will not be included, and parents or caregivers will be required to provide their children with lunch and two snacks.)

"We're looking to make it a productive day," said Larry Bush, CEO and president of the YMCA of Honolulu.

Ray Sanborn, executive director of Kamaaina Kids, said his program will work with teachers and parents to coordinate homework assignments and has contracted with Tutors Hawaii to provide educational assistance.

Hannemann said city officials will monitor participation to see if the programs should be expanded to district parks in other communities.

So far, about 600 children have been registered for the program, but there is space for more, Bush and Sanborn said.