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# U.S. Department of Education Launches National Summer Learning & Enrichment Collaborative to Help Students Most Impacted by the Pandemic  

# U.S. Department of Education Launches National Summer Learning & Enrichment Collaborative to Help Students Most Impacted by the Pandemic  

April 26, 2021

**Contact:  **press@ed.gov

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**NOTE**: Press interested in covering the launch of the  Collaborative may register  here to receive updated meeting  information and links to join National Convening on April 26 and 27.

The U.S. Department of Education (ED) launched the Summer  Learning & Enrichment Collaborative today, providing support to 46 states,  the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Bureau of Indian  Education, and three territories working together to use American Rescue Plan  and other federal pandemic relief funding to support as many students as  possible through enriching and educational summer programming. Summer programs  are key in the nation’s efforts to address lost instructional and  extracurricular time as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Collaborative—a partnership between ED, the Council  of Chief State School Officers, the National Governors Association, and other  national partners—follows President Joe Biden’s call to action at ED’s National Safe School Reopening  Summit to, “work together to ensure that all children have access to  high quality summer learning and enrichment opportunities this summer and  beyond.” Biden added that, “This is essential for all students, particularly  those disproportionately impacted by the pandemic, students of color, English  learners, students with disabilities, homeless students, and all those who went  without in-person instruction this year.”

The Collaborative brings together state and local leaders  working alongside key stakeholders to design evidence-based summer programs  that address the lost instructional, social, and extracurricular time students  have experienced as a result of the pandemic, especially underserved students  and those disproportionately affected by COVID-19.

“Too many students have experienced interruptions in  learning and negative effects on their social and emotional wellbeing due to  time apart from friends and community,” said Secretary of Education Miguel  Cardona. “Summer presents a key opportunity for school districts and community  partners to accelerate learning and provide new avenues for students to safely  engage with each other in fun activities. Let’s use this moment to reimagine  what fun, engaging summer programming can look like, make it accessible for all  students, and work together to make sure our communities recover and rebuild  stronger than they were before the pandemic.”

The American Rescue Plan Elementary and Secondary School  Emergency Relief (ARP ESSER) Fund provides nearly $122 billion to states and  school districts and requires that states invest at least $1.2 billion on  evidence-based summer enrichment programs. Under the ARP ESSER Fund, school  districts are also required to use at least $21 billion for evidence-based  initiatives to address the impact of lost instructional time, including summer  programs. ED recently released the ARP ESSER state plan application template,  which invites states to describe their plans for how they will engage their  communities to distribute and utilize ARP ESSER funds.

Over the next two days, ED will convene states for  virtual learning sessions to kick off the Collaborative. The Collaborative aims  to both take a national approach to understanding best practice and rapidly  setting up fun, innovative, and engaging summer opportunities for students,  while also facilitating regional and local level partnerships to ensure speedy  and robust implementation of state- and district-level plans.

The convening will include sessions on forming  state-level coalitions; using evidence to inform summer programs; and using  federal funds to promote equity through summer enrichment opportunities that  support social, emotional, and academic development. Speakers include:  Secretary Miguel Cardona, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, Arkansas Gov. Asa  Hutchinson, Illinois State Superintendent of Education Dr. Carmen Ayala,  Arkansas Secretary of Education Johnny Key, Education Trust Interim CEO Denise  Forte, National Summer Learning Association CEO Aaron Dworkin, and Founder of  the Harlem Children’s Zone Geoffrey Canada. Participants will discuss how to  design summer programming in ways that create safe, welcoming, and inclusive environments  that reengage students socially, emotionally, and academically as they recover  from the impacts of COVID-19.

Summer activities can include opportunities to accelerate  learning, along with a broad array of enrichment activities ranging from physical  fitness and heal education; arts programs; science, technology, engineering and  math (STEM) activities; and career and technical education (CTE) programs; to  youth development. For older students, these opportunities can include a  work-based learning or community service component.

The Collaborative also emphasizes the importance of  offering the necessary supports to ensure all students have access to summer  learning and enrichment programs—including students with disabilities, English  learners, students from low-income backgrounds, and students experiencing  homelessness. In addition to the launch of the Collaborative, ED recently  released Volume 2 of the COVID-19  Handbook, which outlines strategies to meet the needs of underserved  students, including summer learning opportunities.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention  recently released guidance for operating  youth and summer camps during COVID-19. The guidance is intended to help camp  administrators operate camps while preventing the spread of COVID-19 and  protecting campers, their families, staff, and communities. The Summer Learning  & Enrichment Collaborative will prioritize and maintain a clear and ongoing  emphasis on health and safety in all summer offerings.

**Organizations  participating in The Collaborative’s convening include**:

AASA, The School Superintendents  AssociationAmerican Camp AssociationAmerican Federation of TeachersBoys & Girls Clubs of AmericaCharles Stewart Mott FoundationCouncil of Chief State School OfficersCouncil of the Great City SchoolsNational Association of Elementary School  PrincipalsNational Association of Secondary School PrincipalsNational Education AssociationNational Governors AssociationNational League of CitiesNational Rural Education AssociationNational Summer Learning AssociationNational Youth Employment CoalitionNebraska Children and Families  FoundationRAND CorporationStriveTogetherThe Afterschool AllianceThe Education TrustThe National Comprehensive CenterWallace Foundation

Additional information about the Collaborative is  available here. Planning meetings  as well as regional and theme based convenings will take place in May through July,  and the Department will provide additional technical assistance to states and  districts upon request. At the end of the summer, the Department will hold a  second national convening to discuss implementation success and  challenges.
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