Rochester City School District

Summer Programs Ease Transitions, Support Student Learning

By Jean-Claude Brizard
Rochester Superintendent of Schools

If our students are to succeed in school, we must provide them the tools to do so.

As adults, we would not walk into a new job unprepared for what’s expected of us. We count on the skills we have acquired over time to help us transition into unfamiliar situations. Likewise, our students must be prepared with the academic and personal skills they need to make a successful transition to the next grade level. This is especially true of students entering grades 7-9.

We know that student performance declines between grades 4 and 8, that time spent on English and math falls significantly from elementary to secondary school, and that 7th through 9th grades are trouble spots for disengagement (e.g., attendance, suspension, retention, dropping out).

This year’s summer programs in the Rochester City School District are designed specifically to prepare students for what lies ahead. Nearly one-third of our students are expected to take advantage of these extended learning opportunities.

A new transition program for entering 7th graders will serve 900 students from across the district. This 20-day program will focus on academic skills in the core subjects (English/literacy, math, science, social studies) and acceleration toward college readiness. It will also demystify the high school experience by familiarizing them with multi-class schedules, counselors, study skills, lockers, rules of conduct, and transportation, all of which represent dramatic changes from elementary school. Further, it will incorporate social/emotional support through peer networking, adult advocates, and big brother/big sister relationships with older students.

Fifteen hundred 7th and 8th graders will benefit from a five-week program to strengthen their academic skills and prevent summer learning loss. This program incorporates AVID (Advancement Via Individual Determination), a nationally successful model for bringing out the best in students and closing the achievement gap. AVID students are more likely to take AP classes in high school, complete their college eligibility requirements, and get into four-year colleges.

Students entering kindergarten also face an important transition, particularly those who have not had the benefit of pre-K. A new pre-K summer transition program will help 170 children, including students who have limited proficiency in English (English language learners), adjust to school and separation from family. These youngest of learners will gain foundation skills in literacy and language that will prepare them for successful learning in kindergarten and beyond.

We are also offering summer programs at grades K-12 targeted to English language learners and students coming to us from other countries. Focus is on the areas of school readiness, literacy, cultural adjustment, and career exploration. This support will help students make the challenging transition to a new academic environment and bridge the language and cultural barriers to successful learning.

We are also tapping the expertise of our college community this summer to inspire students to reach their post-high school goals. The Young Scholars camp on the SUNY Geneseo campus will find 60 students working on an archeological dig, soil analysis, research, and documentation. Our Infotonics partnership with Nazareth College, Finger Lakes Community College, and Genesee Community College will introduce 120 students in grades 4-9 to new science concepts from space travel to crime scene investigation. Our own Inquiry Institute and Bioscience Lab programs, both new this year, will prepare entering 9th graders for the rigor and rewards of high school science.

Students in grades 9-12 can choose from an expanded menu of course offerings, allowing them to gain additional credits toward graduation and accelerate their high school program. Courses in English, math, science, social studies, health, and foreign language will prepare them to take Regents exams in August and to be a step ahead come September.

These and other summer programs will ensure that students get the support and skill development they need for the coming school year, whether entering kindergarten, grade 12, or any grade in between. Our goal is to ensure that every child is post-secondary ready; that goal can be reached if we pay attention to every child on every step of the education ladder.