Whittier City School District

In 2009, the Whittier City School District, an urban 6,500-student K-8 district located about 12 miles southeast of Los Angeles, launched a new summer learning program called Jumpstart. Jumpstart was a pilot project intended to revive summer schooling, which years before had fallen victim to budget cuts. It wasn't meant to be traditional, said Becky Shultz, director of the district's extended learning programs. It would be "disguised education," she said. "You wouldn't know there was so much learning going on because there would be so much fun." The inaugural summer program, using 21st Century Community Learning Centers federal funding, was relatively modest: 400 students attending for half a day at a couple of elementary school sites. Then summers really got hot. The catalyst was a five-year grant from the David and Lucile Packard Foundation to develop, operate and promote summer learning, with $110,000 in funding in the early years, declining gradually. It was a major jumpstart for Jumpstart. "It hasn't been difficult to persuade school leaders here that summer learning programs are important," said Shultz. "They understand the idea and the realities. And while there hasn't been any district money in recent years for a traditional summer school program, all of our leaders-the board, the superintendent-have been very supportive of a program with alternative funding." The Packard money has allowed Shultz and colleagues to expand and deepen their concept of summer learning, particularly the popular summer camp sensibility, which more readily attracts students looking for a "non-educational experience.