When should school districts communicate about summer school enrollment?

Send the initial summer school enrollment communication in March or April, before the end-of-year assessment period when teachers and counselors are making recommendations. Families who receive summer school information at the same time that teachers are identifying students for recommendation can act quickly rather than scrambling to enroll in May when spaces are filling. A reminder in late April and a final enrollment deadline reminder in early May rounds out the communication cadence.

What should a summer school enrollment newsletter include?

Cover the program types available and who they are for, the dates and times, the location or locations, the cost or confirmation that it is free, the enrollment process and deadline, transportation options, and how to find out if a child's teacher has recommended summer participation. Include a direct application link or form. Every question a family needs answered before they can enroll should be in this communication, not on a separate website page.

How should districts communicate summer school to families in a way that does not carry stigma?

Frame all summer programs positively and accurately. An academic support program for students who need to strengthen specific skills is more accurately described as an opportunity than as remediation. Programs that mix academic skill-building with enrichment activities, community, and fun are more appealing to families than those described purely in academic deficit terms. The communication should reflect the actual experience the program provides.

What communication mistakes cause summer programs to be underenrolled?

The most common reason summer programs are underenrolled is that the communication reaches families too late. Families who receive summer school enrollment information in May, when childcare and summer plans have already been arranged, are unlikely to change plans. The second reason is communication that is unclear about cost. Families who are unsure whether a program is free or paid will often not pursue it rather than call to ask.

How does Daystage support summer school enrollment communication?

Daystage allows district communications teams to send targeted summer school enrollment information to the families of students who have been identified as candidates for summer programs, separate from the general district community announcement. That segmentation means the families who most need the information receive it directly and personally rather than as a general announcement buried in the spring newsletter.

District Summer School Enrollment

Summer school programs that are not well-communicated are summer school programs that are underenrolled. This is especially true for the intervention and academic support programs that serve the students who most need them. Families who are not aware of the programs, or who do not understand how to enroll, do not enroll.

Summer program communication is an equity practice as much as it is an operations practice.

Reach families before their summer plans are set

Families who have already enrolled children in a summer camp, arranged childcare, or planned a family vacation are unlikely to change those plans when they receive summer school information in May. The window for reaching families before their summer is planned is typically February through April.

Sending the initial summer school communication in March gives families two to three months to incorporate the program into their summer planning. Sending it in May puts the district in the position of asking families to disrupt plans they have already made, which produces much lower enrollment rates regardless of how good the program is.

If program details are not finalized by March, send a preliminary announcement that confirms the program will be offered, the approximate dates, and when full enrollment information will be available. That placeholder communication reserves space in families' summer planning even before the details are ready.

Distinguish between program types clearly

Most districts offer more than one type of summer program: credit recovery for older students, academic enrichment for students performing below grade level, advancement programs for high-achieving students, and specialized programs for students with specific learning needs. These are different programs serving different students for different reasons.

The enrollment communication should be specific about who each program is for. A family whose child received a teacher recommendation for the reading support program needs different information than a family whose child is interested in a math enrichment elective. Lumping all summer programs into a single announcement makes it harder for families to understand which program applies to them.

Be explicit about cost and transportation

Two pieces of information cause the most drop-off between families reading about a summer program and families actually enrolling: cost and transportation. Many families will not pursue a program if they are unclear about whether it is free or how their child would get there.

State the cost explicitly in the first paragraph of the enrollment communication. "This program is free for all enrolled students" or "The program fee is $75 per week, with financial assistance available. Contact the district office for the assistance application." Do not bury cost information at the bottom of the page or require families to call to find out.

Transportation information is equally important. If the district provides bus service for summer school, say so and include the process for signing up. If transportation is not provided, acknowledge that directly and include information about community transportation resources if they exist.

Work with teachers and counselors

Teacher and counselor recommendations carry more weight with families than any district communication. Families who receive a personal recommendation from their child's teacher to attend summer school are significantly more likely to enroll than families who only receive the general district announcement.

Build the teacher recommendation into the communication process. Give teachers the language and the materials to recommend summer school enrollment as part of spring conferences or report card communications. When the district newsletter confirms what the teacher has already said, the message is reinforced from two directions.

For programs specifically designed to serve students who are significantly behind grade level, the teacher recommendation is more important than the general communication. Make sure teachers have what they need to communicate it specifically and personally.

Follow up with families who do not enroll

For students who have been specifically recommended for summer support programs, a follow-up communication to families who have not yet enrolled by the reminder deadline makes a meaningful difference. Not a generic enrollment reminder. A specific message that says: "Your child's teacher has recommended summer reading support. We have not yet received an enrollment form. Enrollment closes on May 15. Here is how to sign up."

This level of follow-through requires the ability to identify which recommended families have enrolled and which have not. But it is the communication practice that most directly serves the students the summer program was designed to help.

District Summer School Enrollment Communication: How to Fill Your Programs