Bridging the Summer Gap: What District Leaders Say About Learning Beyond the School Year

A Study by AASA, The School Superintendents Association, National Summer Learning Association, and Gallup Shows District Leaders Prioritize Academic Benefits of Summer Programs

Key Findings:

• A majority (66%) of U.S. K-12 superintendents plan to maintain summer learning funding, while an additional 16% intend to increase it.
• 91% of U.S. K-12 superintendents say summer programs are important to achieving their district’s goals.
• 73% say maintaining or improving academic skills is the most important benefit of these programs.
• Less than half of superintendents serving middle-income (44%) and lower-income (45%) districts say there are adequate summer programs in their area, compared with 56% of those serving in upper-income districts.

Executive Summary:

Superintendents Express Commitment to Summer Learning

Amid growing attention to the “summer slide” in learning that occurs when K-12 children take a break from school, U.S. school superintendents see summer learning programs, including those provided by their district, as important to achieving their district’s objectives. More than nine in 10 K-12 superintendents say summer programs are very important (41%) or important (50%) to reaching their district’s strategic goals. Superintendents from larger districts and those in urban or suburban locations are more inclined than their peers in smaller districts and rural areas to rate summer programs as very important.

While superintendents place a high priority on summer learning programs, many believe that such opportunities are lacking in their local area. Slightly less than half of superintendents, 48%, believe there are adequate summer program options available for K-12 students in their local community, while 50% say there are not. More than half of those serving in upper-income districts (56%) are optimistic about the availability of summer programs in their area, compared with less than half of superintendents serving middle-income (44%) and lower-income (45%) districts.

These results are based on a November 2024-January 2025 web survey of U.S. K-12 superintendents, conducted by Gallup for the National Summer Learning Association (NSLA) and The School Superintendents Association (AASA). Previously, Gallup reported on findings from a survey of parents about summer learning for the NSLA and the American Camp Association (ACA). The superintendent survey was completed prior to the Trump administration taking office and attempting to curtail government spending.

Superintendents’ commitment to summer learning is underscored by the finding that two-thirds plan to maintain their district’s spending on summer programs this year, while 16% plan to increase it. The remaining 18% plan to decrease spending.

These funding decisions are being made as the pandemic-era American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), used in many districts to help fund summer learning in recent years, is ending. About two-thirds of superintendents (63%) say their district used ARPA funds on summer programming between the 2021-2022 and 2024-2025 school years. Among those superintendents, 53% report using ARPA funds to pay for programs that existed before the COVID-19 pandemic, 62% say their district used funds to expand pre-pandemic programs, and 81% say they used funds to establish new summer programs.

With those federal dollars going away, superintendents now primarily use district budget funds (81%) or grants (52%) to pay for summer programs that were created or expanded in recent years.

Academic Focus Is Nearly Universal

Over nine in 10 superintendents say their district offers summer programs with an academic focus. After academics, the next most common summer programs offered by school districts involve sports and the arts. Smaller proportions, less than 20% each, report their district offers summer programs focused on leadership or social skill development, nature, or traditional camps with no specific focus.

When asked how they evaluate the success of their summer program offerings, 33% of superintendents say they rely on improved reading/math scores, and 25% say success is based on student performance at the start of the new school year. One-quarter use program enrollment as a measure of success.

Superintendents in districts with smaller enrollment sizes are more likely than those in medium or large districts to say improved test scores are the primary way they evaluate programs (39% vs. 28%, respectively). Likewise, superintendents in lower-income districts (40%) are more likely than those in medium-income (32%) and higher-income districts (27%) to judge success based on test scores.

Benefits of Summer Programs