Thursday, July 28, 2011

Summer learning program seeks to close opportunity gap - The Washington Post

Summer learning program seeks to close opportunity gap - The Washington Post: For many Washington area kids, summer is a footloose season marked by family trips and shuttling from camp to camp. But for poor children, the hot months are often filled with empty time that stultifies learning.

The opportunity gap has widened this year as some cash-strapped local agencies have eliminated thousands of summer school slots, leaving needy students with fewer ways to keep pace with their more affluent peers.

Battling the summer slide in the District is Horizons Greater Washington, one of a handful of privately funded efforts that seek to turn summer into an advantage — instead of a liability — for children from low-income families.