Contributed by: EDUCATION STRATEGY GROUP
Each year, one in five graduating high school seniors who intend to move on to postsecondary education or training don’t arrive on campus in the fall. In a phenomenon known as “summer melt,” this equates to over a million students each year who get lost in the transition from high school to college.
A summer bridge program provides a throughline of support to students during the summer months to ensure they are able to navigate the transition. An effective summer bridge program encompasses academic (e.g. English and math instruction; tutoring), navigational (e.g. connection to on-campus resources; support with completing key actions; advising on course of study and career alignment; campus tours; financial aid and literacy), and relational components (e.g. cohort-based social activities; mentorship). The program can be hosted at an institution, system, or state-level, all of which require strong partnerships between K-12 and postsecondary systems. They can be institution-specific or institution-agnostic, and can be offered virtually, in-person, or in a hybrid model.
How does the strategy create more equitable access and opportunities?
Students of color, low-income students, and first-generation students are the most likely to be impacted by summer melt. The pandemic has exacerbated the challenges these students face, with the year-to-year decline in undergraduate enrollment being twice as high for Black students, three times as high for Indigenous students, and five times as high for Hispanic students as their White peers. It is incumbent on K-12 and postsecondary systems to build integrated systems of support to ensure a “warm hand-off” during the summer months. Any summer bridge program should specifically target outreach and support to students facing the most significant challenges.
What are the budget implications for implementing the strategy?
The cost of implementing a summer bridge program is variable, depending on existing resources and the scale of the program. The primary cost is personnel (e.g. course instructors, tutors, facilitators, advisors, etc.); other costs might include communications resources (e.g. marketing and design, mailed collateral, paid ads, etc.), curricula (if purchasing from an external vendor), course credit, and events (e.g. food, supplies, transportation, etc.). Some states (such as Indiana and Texas) also offered financial incentives for students and advisors for meeting program benchmarks and enrolling at a postsecondary institution in the fall. Based on recent statewide models, costs can range from $200-700 per student.
