San Diego Unified board approves funds for summer school

The San Diego Unified school board has approved $22 million for in-person and online summer school to help students who have fallen behind academically because of school closures during the Covid-19 pandemic, according to the San Diego Union-Tribune.

At a board meeting Tuesday school officials reported that 1 in 5 San Diego Unified seniors are not on track to graduate this June. High school grades fell overall, with the number of D’s and F’s increasing from 15% to 21%. Middle school grades are down as well, with the number of D’s and F’s climbing from 12% to 23% compared to last year at this time, according to the report.

The district has kept campuses closed since March of last year, but began offering in-person instruction to small groups of students with academic and social needs in October, according to the San Diego Union-Tribune.

The district plans to offer in-person summer school to elementary school students four hours a day, with additional hours of online learning. Half-day programs will be offered for middle and high school students on campuses, as well as an online credit recovery program for high school students.

The classes are optional. Students who are struggling academically will be given priority, according to the report.