DEEL Partners with Community Organizations to Provide High-Quality Summer Learning Opportunities to Seattle K-12 Youth 

$1M in investments will enhance academic opportunities, college and career exploration, & social-emotional learning to support student achievement and wellbeing in response to COVID-19  

Today, the Seattle Department of Education and Early Learning announced $1 million in community investments to enhance summer learning opportunities for more than 1,400 kindergarten through 12^th grade youth in Seattle. Funds will support community-based organizations to provide academic experiences, college and career exploration, and enrichment opportunities for Seattle youth, focusing on social-emotional learning.

2022 is the second consecutive year DEEL will partner with community organizations on summer programming for youth to address the impact of COVID-19 on student learning. This year, 19 organizations will receive awards ranging from $11,400 to $75,000. Programs will serve historically underserved youth disproportionately impacted by systemic inequities and disruptions to learning caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Keeping Students Engaged and Inspired to Learn with Dynamic Summer Opportunities

With the return to in-person learning, school communities continue to feel the impact of COVID-19 on student learning. The pandemic limited important resources families, schools, and community-based organizations had to help meet the social, emotional and academic needs of students. For youth furthest from educational justice, remote learning and limited access to programs and services compounded existing inequities. DEEL is committed to advancing educational equity by increasing access to summer programs for young people most impacted by the pandemic.

DEEL’s Summer Learning Enhancement funds support a range of learning experiences such as reading, writing, robotics, coding, gardening, cooking and college tours. Of the 19 organizations funded, three are first-time grant recipients from DEEL, and most programs are located in central and south Seattle.

Awardee and Opportunity & Access investment partner Empowering Youth and Families Outreach (EYFO) will host a six-week Summer Leadership Institute providing youth with leadership opportunities, weekly field trips, dance, swimming, art, photography, cooking, marine science, double dutch, and golf. “Our curriculum equips diverse youth with the confidence and self-awareness to distinguish themselves as leaders both inside and outside the classroom while developing their ability to reflect and set goals. It prioritizes social connections, experiential learning and play for young people as they engage in project-based learning and enrichment activities,” said EYFO Program Manager, Ashleigh Shoecraft. “Thanks to an award from DEEL’s Summer Learning Enhancement funds, every family will receive a scholarship rate this year! Families can enroll here.”

Summer Investments Strengthen Year-Round Learning Opportunities and Supports for K-12 Youth 

Summer programs supported by DEEL’s Summer Learning Enhancement funds will be provided alongside in-person programs hosted annually by FEPP Levy School-Based Investment (SBI) partner schools. FEPP Levy partner schools use SBI funds in addition to Title I and Learning Assistance Program (LAP) funds offer academic, enrichment, college & career readiness, and social emotional learning programming for students during summer months. DEEL’s SBI investments include tutoring, case management, STEM programming, visual and performing arts, work-based learning and more.

In addition, this summer, DEEL’s community-based O&A partners will provide college and career exploration and mentorship opportunities for more than 300 youth. O&A investments fund organizations to help students develop important skills to graduate on-time and achieve their postsecondary goals. Similar to O&A investments, Summer Learning Enhancement funds support community organizations playing an important role in the ecosystem of support for Seattle youth by addressing their developmental needs and closing race-based opportunity gaps.

Summer Learning Enhancement Funds Awardees

DEEL encourages families with school-age children to explore summer learning opportunities. Please visit the links below to learn more about summer programming supported by DEEL. Following are program details for the 19 organizations receiving funding for summer 2022:

• ACE Academy, $31,790: The ACE College Knowledge Experience will prepare high school upperclassmen for the college application process and provide opportunities to visit campuses around the state of Washington. Students will visit four universities, learn about the admission process and complete a portfolio designed to give them the tools to complete the college application process.
• Atlantic Street Center, $75,000: Atlantic Street Center’s Summer Academy will provide reading, writing, and math instruction along with social skill building and cultural enrichment activities for 3rd to 9th grade students experiencing achievement gaps.
• Boys and Girls Club of King County, $75,000: Boys and Girls Club of King County will host a Youth Force College and Career Readiness program to serve middle and high school students with career development for youth facing multiple barriers to success through paid internships, industry-focused apprentice programs and hands-on work-based learning.
• Coyote Central North, $75,000: Studio Coyote will foster creative problem solving and social-emotional growth for youth ages 10-15 through hands-on learning with creative professionals from industries including robotics, music production, creative writing, electronics, dance, metal working and filmmaking. Students will learn new skills rooted in their interests and develop personal and collaborative projects which will be showcased in the final sessions to family and community.
• Creative Justice, $52,117:  Creative Justice’s BASE (Building, Affirming & Strengthening Experiences) Arts program will focus on using art, culture, and artistic and cultural practices as tools for youth to understand problems, build solutions, collaborate, speak truth to power, healing and health and manifest brighter futures.
• East African Community Services, $75,000: East African Community Services’ Educate the Horn program provides project-based learning sequences in English-Language Arts,  mathematics, coding, and robotics while providing opportunities for enrichment, socializing, and physical activities.
• El Centro de la Raza, $42,838: El Centro de la Raza’s Echale Ganas Summer Institute, serving Hispanic and Latino middle school students, will provide quality academic support in language arts, math and ethnic studies. Lessons are project-based and self-selected so students will have a voice and choice in their activities.
• Empowering Youth & Families Outreach, $60,000: Empowering Youth & Families Outreach’s Summer Leadership Institute for K-8th grade students will equip youth of color with the confidence and self-awareness to distinguish themselves as leaders by prioritizing social connections among young people and providing academic support, youth-led activities, weekly field trips and daily physical activities.
• The Good Foot Arts Collective, $63,819: The Good Foot Power UP/Level UP Enrichment Program will provide incoming 9th grade Black, Indigenous, and high school students of color with academic instruction focused on math, language arts, academic study skills, social-emotional skills, and college and career exploration opportunities.
• iUrban Teen, $40,310: iUrban Teen intentionally engages and inspires underrepresented youth who do not seek education beyond high school. Programming focuses on a variety of tech skills and competencies including GIS mapping, data analysis, design thinking, machine learning, advanced manufacturing, skilled trades, cyber security and technical writing.
• Launch, $63,695: Launch’s summer program themed Earth, Ocean & Sky will serve K-5^th grade students with a focus on the intersection of climate justice and racial justice. Programming will help students learn and build their relationship with plants and the earth and teach young learners about healing, science, creativity while also increasing their knowledge of Indigenous teaching with Coast Salish educators.
• Marvin Thomas Memorial Fund (MTMF), $27,000: MTMF’s “Community Connections” program will partner with Concord International Elementary School to provide programming with a focus on social-emotional skills, culturally responsive arts & crafts projects, STEM activities, cooking classes, dance, music, academic support, and physical activities.
• Multimedia Resource & Technical Institute (MRTI), $74,395: MRTI’s Summer Youth Media Program will provide Black, Indigenous, and youth of color ages 10-18 with collaborative opportunities to learn about technology and explore their voice through photography, digital storytelling, and video in the form of documentary production.
• Seattle Parks & Recreation at Denny Middle School, $30,000:  In partnership with Denny Middle School, Seattle Parks and Recreation will host Denny Middle School Westside Scholars Academy to provide an enrichment portion of summer school focusing on youth’s social-emotional development, health and wellness, and college and career readiness. Activities will include CoRe Gaming, SPIN Girls Cub, coding, urban gardening, youth media club and archery.
• Seattle Parks & Recreation at Aki Middle School, $39,450: Seattle Parks’ PAL program, in partnership with Aki Kurose’s Enhancement Program, will serve 5th – 8th grade students with daily math, English-Language Arts, enrichment, recreation, and mentorship. The three main components include Career Labs 21st Century Job Skills modules, local college and university tours, and an University of Oregon overnight campus visit.
• Somali Family Safety Task Force (SFTF), $44,300: SFTF’s summer program will serve Somali youth by empowering healthy development and transition to adulthood though positive connections, cultural enrichment and career and college opportunities. Planned activities include field trips to local colleges and major employers, youth-led research, multi-media presentations and an end-of-summer youth-led college and career workshop for parents and community.
• South End Stories, $73,797:  In partnership with Lowell Elementary School, South End Stories’ Academy of Play program will immerse students in project-based learning and arts. Youth will create graphic novels, poetry, expressions of justice in dance, screenwriting and drawing.
• Student & Family Support Services, $11,400:  Student and Family Support Services’ Summer Advancement Program for K-5th grade students will provide Black and African American students with academic instruction in math, reading and writing. Other activities include physical fitness and social-emotional development activities.
• Washington Building Leaders of Change (WA-Bloc), $51,856: WA-Bloc’s Children’s Defense Fund Freedom Schools Summer program will provide civil rights-integrated reading curriculum, intergenerational leadership, youth-led National Day of Social Action toward community-based solutions, family and community engagement, nutrition & health for students in the Rainier Beach neighborhood.

Funding for DEEL’s Summer Learning Enhancement funds is made possible by the 2018 voter-approved Families, Education, Preschool and Promise Levy and builds upon year-round FEPP Levy School-Based Investments and Opportunity & Access Investments that provide supplemental services and contributes to K-12 student achievement and college and career readiness.

Summer learning opportunities will also be offered by Seattle Parks and Recreation, The Seattle Public Library, and Seattle Public Schools.