NYC's Summer Rising program open to more students this summer

New York City Mayor Eric Adams and Schools Chancellor David Banks announced Friday that the city would continue last year’s popular Summer Rising program, increasing hours, sites and seats for younger students.

Like last year, the revamped summer school program for kids in elementary and middle school will be free. It will include academic subjects in the morning with activities offered by community-based nonprofits in the afternoon.

Officials, who spoke at the Bronx Delta School, said the program will operate from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily, serving 110,000 students in K-8 — about 10,000 more than last year.

There will also be academic offerings for high school students, but officials did not provide details. Adams has already announced an expansion of the city’s Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP) to 100,000 young people as part of his plan to stem gun violence.

“You don’t have to reinvent the wheel,” Banks said of Summer Rising. “You just need to make it better and better.”

To that end, Adams said he wants to see a greater emphasis on experiential learning this summer.

“The real classroom is not in the sterilized environment of the building,” he said. “The city is a classroom.”

Adams said students should be taking cross-cultural field trips within the city to learn about other communities, go to more museums and delve into the history of the subway system.

There will also be offerings for high school students who need to catch up, but officials have not offered details.

Last year, the de Blasio Administration drew on federal stimulus dollars to help students regain ground they lost during remote and hybrid learning, build a bridge back to full-time school and provide childcare for families who had their lives upended by the pandemic.

At the time, the administration said Summer Rising would serve 200,000 students, but officials now say that number included both summer school and the youth jobs program.

Adams framed the issue in terms of equity: Research shows students can lose some of their academic gains over the summer, but affluent families make up for that and more through camps and trips.

“So when our children get back to school in September, they have a summer loss,” Adams said. “When affluent communities get back to school in September they have a summer enhancement. … That’s why this focus is so important.”

While families have expressed enthusiasm about Summer Rising, some principals scrambled for staffing, and nonprofit providers faced logistical challenges.

Summer Rising will be concentrated in neighborhoods that officials deem as having the highest needs, with six weeks of programming for middle schools and seven weeks for elementary school students. Enrollment details are forthcoming, with seats available on a first-come, first-served basis — and students who are identified for additional support will be prioritized, officials said.