Middle-grade woodworking students used their new skills to make toy trucks for kindergartners at Willard Elementary. Meanwhile, younger students helped to raise baby chicks and increased fitness through Zumba. These are just three of countless experiences enjoyed by more than 1,100 students participating in PEF's 2011 pre-K-8 Summer Enrichment and High School Summer Program. Students also made solar ovens, created cities using math skills, learned to play the guitar, strengthened computer skills, and made their own books, among many other opportunities.
Five distinct summer programs took place from July 5 - Aug. 5 at Franklin, Norma Coombs, and Willard elementary schools (for K-8), at Wilson Middle School (for 5-8 grades), and at Marshall Fundamental School where high school students earned school credit in such classes as Spanish 2, AP European History, Masterful Writing, Pre-Calculus, Geometry, and Computer Science.
"Expanding our program into Northwest Pasadena by adding Franklin School made PEF's program even more accessible to the entire community." says PEF's Executive Director Patrick Conyers.
While budget cuts continued to eliminate summer school programs across the state, PEF's Summer Enrichment Program was bigger than ever, with a 25 percent enrollment increase from 2010. While students were engaged by hands-on activities that incorporated creativity and fun-based learning, parents were perhaps wowed by the smaller class sizes and longer class periods that allowed teachers to focus more attention on the students, something not always possible during the traditional school year given time limitations and increased class sizes.
Beyond increased enrollment and school sites, PEF boasted one more high note -- it provided $60,000 in tuition assistance, tripling the amount awarded the previous year. Funding for scholarships was provided by the Goodstein Family, Pasadena Rotary, and the Ahmanson, Helen & Will Webster, and Schow Foundations.
See more photos of the summer programs here.
Photos (top to bottom): Woodworking; Fitnessgram; School of Rock; Calculus.
