District 202 staff reported to the Board’s site and finance committee on Aug. 20 that summer school and related programs ran again this year after ESSER funding ended, but the shift to Title I funding and operational choices limited access for some families.

The presentation by district staff laid out program types, enrollment counts and operational challenges. Staff said summer bridge and pre-algebra programs ran at a single host site (Timber Ridge), that transportation was not provided, and that the district relied on Title I grant rules that require programming to be hosted at Title I schools and to serve a majority of Title I students.

District staff said that constraint reduced participation among students from non-Title I elementary “houses,” and produced daily traffic and pickup delays at the Timber Ridge site. “We did lose some students because parents did not want to continue to sit in the car line,” a staff presenter said. Staff reported about 101 students on the bridge-program wait list; some were enrolled after earlier registrants dropped.

At the high-school level, staff reported two summer sessions across sites. Plainfield North (session 1) had 85 registrations with highest enrollment in driver’s education and economics. Plainfield Central and South reported higher aggregate registrations (126 for one session; 100 for a second), with U.S. history and geometry among the largest classes. Staff said most in-person offerings had no failed courses this year; credit-recovery sections delivered online through the vendor Ingenuity produced most course failures.

The district also offered a small language-acquisition program for newly arrived English learners (defined by Illinois State Board of Education as newcomers). Staff described transportation barriers that limited participation: “A lot of our families ... are not yet, stable where they have transportation,” a presenter said, and reported about 16 students in that newcomer class who maintained attendance.

For students with Individualized Education Programs (IEPs), the district reported extended school year (ESY) participation of 517 students out of 552 recommended. Staff said 100% of families receiving transportation used it, and post-program surveys indicated 87% of ESY students maintained skills and 12% increased skills during ESY.

Board members asked about family surveys, wait-list outreach and whether families would pay for fee-based options; staff said prior surveys found many families would not pay and that equity concerns guide fee decisions. Staff said they will examine lessons learned — including site selection, transportation and communication — to inform next year’s planning.

Staff characterized the summer work as valuable for participating students but flagged access, transportation and Title I eligibility rules as barriers that reduced reach compared with the ESSER-funded years.

Less critical details: staff noted continued teacher efforts to post materials on Google Classroom for families who miss days; Ingenuity remains a supplement when in-person teachers are not available, and the district plans to analyze the effect of the new eight-period regular-day schedule on future summer needs.