LA Summer of Learning Comes to Highland Park/Mt. Washington

Mayor Eric Garcetti, in partnership with Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent John Deasy, JPMorgan Chase & Co., The California Endowment, and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, have launched of the Los Angeles Summer of Learning program, a citywide initiative to keep youth engaged in learning this summer. 

Los Angeles youth age 3 - 24 can access 100 valuable learning opportunities online and in person at City parks and libraries, LAUSD schools, and with museums and cultural institutions like the Getty Center and Aquarium of the Pacific.  The curriculum will offer robust options in science, technology, engineering, arts, and math (S.T.E.A.M.), as well as a work-readiness pathway geared towards the skills needed to succeed in the modern economy.

“LA Summer of Learning will transform Los Angeles into a 500-square-mile campus and provide learning opportunities for our youth when school is not in session,” said Mayor Garcetti. “By connecting our students with creative, interactive and interest-driven learning opportunities, we will help our city’s youth learn new skills and prepare to enter the workforce.”

Upcoming learning opportunities in the Highland Park/Mount Washington area include the robotics programs at the Lincoln Heights Branch Library and the Cyber Patriot Boot Camp at Franklin High School.

“Learning happens everywhere, not only in the classroom,” LAUSD Superintendent John Deasy said. “More than half of the achievement gap between lower- and higher-income youth is due to unequal access to summer learning opportunities. Thanks to the tremendous collaboration of our community partners, businesses, neighborhoods and city agencies, LA Summer of Learning will help increase access for youth, particularly in underserved neighborhoods. Together, we will make learning more visible to participants, parents, teachers, academic institutions, and potential employers.”

The Los Angeles Summer of Learning brings together a coalition of public, private, and non-profit partners to offer Connected Learning opportunities to help students further develop the knowledge and skills essential to their academic and professional success.  The program will reward students by issuing digital “badges” to mark participation and/or achievement in topic-specific and pre-approved curricula and give students a vehicle to document and recognize success that can be shared with peers, schools, and even potential employers.

The program is made possible by private donations, including $500,000 from JPMorgan Chase, and $200,000 from the California Endowment. The MacArthur Foundation, which helped Chicago pilot the program last summer, has also provided valuable technical assistance in designing the program, the website and digital badges.

Mayor Garcetti's office led the creation of this program, arranged financial support and has collaborated with 30 partner organizations, including LAUSD's Beyond the Bell, which led the development of the curriculum and administers the program.

Youth and their parents can sign up for the program at www.summeroflearning.la and can also visit the program's Facebook page at www.facebook.com/lasummeroflearning or Twitter at https://twitter.com/la_learning for more information.