$3.75M grant for Boys & Girls Clubs brings summer academic program for 2,500 kids
The Boys & Girls Clubs of St. Joseph County has landed a $3.75 million state grant to bring a five-week summer academic program — first developed in Indianapolis — reaching 2,500 students at 16 sites.
It would target students with the greatest academic need. Students would pay nothing. Registration starts March 4 for Club members and for nonmembers in the week after that, all at bgcsjc.org.
This is the largest of the Expanding What Works grants that the Indiana Department of Education awarded to youth programs in the state. The grant encourages collaboration among community organizations, cities and school districts to expand the Indy Summer Learning Labs initiative across the state.
“It will not only address the summer slide effect through academic enrichment, but will also incorporate traditional Club programming that is both fun and community-oriented,” Clubs CEO Jacqueline Kronk said, adding that certified teachers would do the curriculum in the mornings, supplemented by the Clubs program in the afternoons. “This initiative is made possible through partnerships with our local school districts, ensuring a comprehensive and inclusive approach to summer learning."
It would nearly triple the Clubs' summer programs, Kronk said. Twelve of the programs would be in St. Joseph County, reaching each school district, and one program each in the Indiana counties of Cass, Fulton, Pulaski and White, where the Clubs already has a presence.
The initiative originally launched in 2021 by The Mind Trust (a nonprofit) and the United Way of Central Indiana.
Officials said that, in 2023, Indianapolis students in the summer program saw a 23% increase in reading scores and a 22% increase in math scores, measured by pre- and post-assessment data.
Grantees will receive support from The Mind Trust and partner with the Lavinia Group, which will provide the reading and math lessons for incoming first through ninth grade students, teacher resources, assessments and support.
Funding for Expanding What Works is allocated through the state’s biennial budget.
By comparison, other winners of the IDOE grant include the Urban League of Northwest Indiana in Gary with nearly $1.13 million, Creating Avenues for Student Transformation in Salem, Ind., with $115,073 and Wabash County YMCA in Wabash with $396,000.
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Boys & Girls Clubs brings summer academic program for 2,500 kids
