Woodburn SD outlines 19-day, literacy-focused summer learning program to serve up to 735 K–7 students

Chrissy Chapman, presenting for the Department of Teaching and Learning, told the Woodburn School District board that the district secured a state summer learning grant to run a literacy-focused program intended to serve 735 students in grades K–7.

"We wrote the grant to serve 735 students in grades K through 7," Chapman said, describing a 19-day program that must include 80 continuous hours of instruction and prioritizes students who are not yet reading at grade level. Chapman said the program will run June 22 through July 17, operate roughly 7:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., include field trips tied to instruction and incorporate STEM and social-emotional learning components.

Chapman said the program will prioritize students who did not receive school-year interventions and will use Title I migrant (Title I-C) and Title I-A (McKinney‑Vento) funds to provide slots for families experiencing houselessness and for migrant families. The district will also offer before-care beginning at 5:00 a.m. to serve families who start work early during the agricultural season.

Staff described supports included in the program: small-group literacy instruction, phonics for elementary students, 45-minute rotation blocks for middle-school instruction (math, literacy, STEM), enrichment classes, a counselor on staff and two family evening events. Chapman said preliminary enrollment was "close to about 600" and noted that many families decide at the program start; staff have a buffer to accommodate late arrivals.

On staffing and costs, Chapman said the program budget is "a million dollars," with staffing and transportation as the largest expenses; staff reported writing teachers, specialists, counselors, special-education case workers, nurses and many assistants into the grant. The district also runs a fee-based afterschool club that can extend the school day for participating students; board members were told the four-week full-day afterschool club fee is $950 and half-day is $550 for the session that mirrors the summer learning dates.

Chapman said the district will measure program impact using STAR and CBM fluency assessments administered at the program's start and finish and will track attendees in the student information system to compare outcomes for attendees versus non-attendees in subsequent state assessments.

Board members asked about capacity, staffing, field-trip chaperones and cost details; staff said they would provide more precise enrollment and staffing numbers later. Chapman said the late timing of the grant notification resulted in some families declining because they had made other plans.