The English Language Learner (ELL) Summer Camp in Worcester, Massachusetts--an intensive six-week program that served middle school and high school students from Worcester Public Schools (WPS)--was the product of a five-way partnership that included the school district, higher education institutions (Latino Education Institute [LEI] at Worcester…

Developmental summer bridge programs are a popular strategy for increasing college readiness among recent high school graduates. Aimed at providing an alternative to traditional developmental education, these programs provide accelerated and focused learning opportunities in order to help students acquire the knowledge and skills needed for…

These "Stories From the Field" describe five Wallace-funded programs working to expand learning and enrichment for disadvantaged children, so they can benefit from the types of opportunities their wealthier counterparts have access to, from homework help to swimming classes. The report details each program's approach, successes and…

This article discusses College Summit, a nonprofit effort centered around the premise that there is a sizable number of students who are more capable of college academics than their test scores and grade point averages suggest. Its four-day summer sessions are focused not on ramping up students' academic performance but in mining students'…

More emphasis should be placed on what can be done to help encourage and prepare students choosing STEM-based majors to enter college, be successful, and graduate. Summer bridge programs can provide pre-college experiences to help attract and retain future STEM majors by exposing them to experiences they would encounter in college math and science…

In the intensive Summerbridge program at San Francisco University High School, high potential middle school and high school students from minority groups work together to prepare for academic high schools. The teachers are high school and college students who serve as role models and learn to love teaching. (MSE)

The University of California, Davis, medical school's intensive summer preentry program for disadvantaged minority students, which previews the first year curriculum, has incorporated a problem-based learning component to augment and prolong its effects. Objective measures of course effectiveness are unavailable; however, self-esteem, study…

Describes a six-week residential orientation and study skills program for educationally disadvantaged students at Livingston College, New Jersey, which includes mock registration, developmental workshops, content study skills courses, purposeful nonacademic activities, and group counseling, and which is adapted to the needs of a multiethnic,…

A four-week summer program at Georgia State University prepares entering African-American students for college work through instruction in mathematics, reading, composition, study skills, word processing, tutoring, academic and career counseling, mentoring, and follow-up. The program has been well received and succeeded in enhancing retention.…

The Strive Toward Excellence Program (STEP) of the University of Akron (Ohio) is a pre-college preparatory program designed to encourage, motivate, and prepare minority and economically disadvantaged students to acquire a strong secondary education and to attend and successfully complete college. Students are selected while enrolled in the sixth…

A five-week summer program for special acceptance students has been developed at St. Mary's University of San Antonio, Texas. Students accepted into the program must show high potential in the form of good high school grades or high test results. The special acceptance program has three components. The academic skills component is a three hour…

The 115 African-American and other nontraditional medical students attending a summer program in study skills and academic preparation to promote achievement and retention were compared with 82 nonattendees on demographic and academic measures. Little difference was found in the groups, except that attendees felt the program helped them adjust to…

The Pre-College Summer Institute (PCSI) program has been in effect at the University of Hartford, College of Basic Studies, since the summer of 1968. PCSI was a five-week, five-days-a-week program designed to evaluate and prepare marginally acceptable students for the college's entering freshman class. Initially, the program was designed to…

Partnerships among elementary, secondary, and postsecondary educators in San Antonio (Texas) aim at improving high school and college retention, particularly for Hispanic students. Programs include curriculum development as early as kindergarten, high school junior and senior enrollment in college courses, minority achievement supports, and…