Eight Grant Recipients Will Receive Services Valued at $25,000 Per Agency to Bolster Learning Over Summer

WILMINGTON, Del., April 20, 2016—Today, United Way of Delaware (UWD) and The Summer Learning Collaborative (SummerCollab) announced the Make Summer Smarter grant. Open to all Delaware non-profits offering summer programs to low-income students, the grant will provide $25,000 in services to eight agencies. The program aims to further SummerCollab’s mission to end summer learning loss among low-income students, which research suggests accounts for two-thirds of the achievement gap between rich and poor youth. The eight grant recipients will receive a suite of training and resources representing best practices learned over the last three years of SummerCollab’s operation. Resources include access to SummerCollab’s online portal of lesson plans written by certified teachers, a full time Operations Specialist to manage supply systems, 20 hours of program consulting, counselor training, personalized learning reports, access to the Let’s Go Learn adaptive assessment, instructional coaching services, and an October summer learning retreat for camp leaders to analyze camp outcomes. Camps will also receive access to the Reading is Fundamental summer library and trainings, a literacy program that has been successfully implemented statewide at Boys and Girls Clubs in partnership with United Way. In fall 2016, four of the grant recipients will be invited to formally join the SummerCollab and receive a full scope of supports from the program. The remaining four agencies will continue to prepare for reapplication in spring 2017. “We are thrilled to have the opportunity to work with more agencies throughout the state through this partnership with United Way,” said SummerCollab President and Executive Director Catherine Lindroth. “United Way has supported SummerCollab since our launch, and this grant process will empower us to provide proven best practices to nearly 3,000 students, a critical step to ending summer learning loss in Delaware.” Michelle A. Taylor, President and Chief Executive Officer added, “This program aligns with United Way of Delaware’s work ensuring that children are properly prepared and ready to achieve success, and most importantly, reading at or above grade level by the end of third grade. Our partnership with the Boys & Girls Club and The Summer Learning Collaborative is key in helping to reduce summer learning loss which then positively affects the following school year. Last summer our students made three months of learning gains, a complete reversal of typical learning loss. The Make Summer Smarter grant will provide resources to nonprofits dedicated to early learning, and United Way is proud to be a partner in this work.”

About The Summer Learning Collaborative

The Summer Learning Collaborative (SummerCollab) works with existing community institutions such as the YMCA and Boys and Girls Club to utilize talent, training, personalized consulting and new technology to address systemic barriers to achieving high quality academic student outcomes during the summer. In 2015, SummerCollab served nearly 1,000 Wilmington students who, on average, gained three months of learning, reversing the typical three months low-income students lose. The SummerCollab’s mission is to ensure all kids have access to extraordinary summer experiences that light them up about learning and all the possibilities of who they can be. For more information, visit http://www.summercollab.org and follow us on Facebook.