- Over half of the achievement gap between lower-income and higher-income youth can be explained by unequal access to summer learning opportunities.
- Summer learning loss is a serious issue for low-income students, who often lose nearly 2 months of grade level equivalency in math and reading over the summer.
- Many students are at an increased risk for gaining unhealthy weight over the summer due to limited access to nutritional food.
The Need
Our Approach: Closing The Achievement Gap
Kid Power’s Summer Leadership Academy offers a 5-week program serving approximately 150 DC students each summer, providing a safe, structured space and helping to prevent summer learning loss. Students participate in the following:
- English Language Arts, Math, Service Learning, and Civics morning classes based on weekly themes;
- Daily teambuilding and Kid Power Circles;
- VeggieTime and Citizenship enrichment based on Kid Power’s After-School Program;
- Public speaking, research, marketing, financial literacy, goal setting, and technology use through long-term projects; and
- Traditional summer camp recreation such as sports, arts and crafts, research projects, scavenger hunts, and off-site field trips.
