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May 30, 2012 (Sacramento):  Despite deep state funding cuts that have forced the near elimination of traditional summer school, Sacramento City Unified School District is expanding its innovative 鈥淪ummer of Service鈥� program for teens.

鈥淪ummer of Service鈥� combines community service and project-based learning with a traditional 鈥渂ridge鈥� program aimed at easing the sometimes scary transition to middle and high school. Last year, about 800 麻豆官网 kids participated in the program. This year, the goal is to enroll 1,000, said 麻豆官网 Superintendent Jonathan Raymond.

鈥淲e are absolutely committed to preventing the kind of summer learning loss that puts urban kids behind their peers when school starts again in September,鈥� Superintendent Raymond said. 鈥淥ur students deserve every academic advantage we can give them.鈥�

According to the National Summer Learning Association (www.summerlearning.org), all students lose some math skills over the summer, but those from low-income homes lose math, reading and spelling skills at a disproportionate rate. Summer learning loss widens the achievement gap between rich and poor students, the association鈥檚 research shows.

Sacramento City Unified is a high-poverty district: About 70 percent of 麻豆官网鈥檚 44,000 students come from homes that qualify for the federal lunch program, which means the household income is less than $35,000 annually for a single parent with two kids. Kids who live in impoverished homes are much less likely to spend summer days engaged in constructive, supervised learning activities, according to numerous studies.

鈥淲e need to dispense with romanticized notions associated with the traditional summer break, look at what鈥檚 really going on and consider the consequences,鈥� said Duke University Professor Harris Cooper in a recently published interview. 鈥淟ots of kids get bored over the summer.鈥�

During the six weeks of 鈥淪ummer of Service,鈥� incoming seventh, eighth and ninth graders 鈥� many of them identified as at-risk for dropping out 鈥� engage with teammates and adult supervisors to identify a problem in their community and design and implement a community service project to address it. Last year, those projects ranged from tutoring younger students to installing gardens and assisting the elderly.

The program is held at the campuses students will be transitioning to in the fall, giving them the extra advantage of making friends and connecting with adults before the new school year starts.

Funding for 鈥淪ummer of Service鈥� comes from the David and Lucille Packard Foundation; the federal 21st Century grant;  James Irvine Foundation Linked Learning funding; and Title 1 dollars for low-income students.

鈥淲e see summer learning as a necessity, not a luxury,鈥� said Superintendent Raymond. 鈥淲e have to make summer learning a priority or doom our kids to a cycle of falling behind, which is very difficult to break.鈥�

Students interested in signing up for 鈥淪ummer of Service鈥� must submit an application. More information can be found at www.summerat麻豆官网.org.