For some Warwick students, the summer means a break from the classroom. No more teachers, no more books.

But for other Warwick students, the summer is a chance to make up lost credits, recover from distance learning struggles, and get ahead for the next year.

Timothy Kane, director of the Warwick Area Career and Technical Center, is overseeing the summer school program. In an interview, Kane shared insight to the Summer Learning Loss Academy.

Kane said 415 Warwick students are taking part in the summer learning academy. Previously, Warwick has held summer school only for seniors who fell short of graduation requirements, but this year, there’s a full roster of summer school attendees.

This summer, students in grades six through 12 meet at Pilgrim High School, Monday through Friday, to catch up on lost work.

Students spend the first half of the day working on English Language Arts (ELA) and the second half on math.

“We’re seeing what we thought,” said Kane, noting that principals and guidance counselors recommended students for summer school based on challenges with distance learning.

“Some students experienced loss of relatives, obviously there were financial issues in homes, and then there were issues where students, for whatever reason, failed to engage. There are a variety of reasons there, but for sure, everyone noticed there was an increase.”

Because of transportation challenges, the Summer Learning Loss Academy is only a half-day program. Students attend classes either in person at Pilgrim or virtually from 7:30 a.m. to 11:45 a.m. The Summer Learning Loss Academy runs from July 6 to August 6.

During the previous school year, students took part in distance learning on Mondays, a schedule Kane said they’re still used to.

“Many of the students choose to stay at home on Mondays. Half the students will elect to come in other days, and the other half who can’t make it here because of transportation will follow along at home,” he said. “Now, the question is, if kids weren’t successful virtually the first time, why offer it again?”

Kane explained that virtual summer school learning differs slightly from virtual learning during the regular academic year. The credit recovery program used in summer school, Edgenuity, allows students “to see day to day statistics of how their work is progressing, which is like seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.”

Edgenuity is an online, blended learning curriculum for summer school through which students must complete 30 hours of coursework to make up for lost credits. The program will monitor when students sign in, and if they complete any work.

Kane also pointed out that the program allows students to work largely at their own pace, as long as they’re hitting daily coursework goals needed to pass. In the event that an ambitious student finishes the course early, a possibility Kane said students have, they are excused from summer school with a passing grade. Students also have the opportunity to get ahead for next school year by completing additional Edgenuity programs.

Ten teachers assist students with virtual learning, but Kane says if students complete the program early, less staff will be needed as the summer goes on. Each teacher currently has an approximate caseload of 40 students.

High school seniors enrolled in summer school began their classes a month earlier, which Kane said is “done as a courtesy to get them out the door earlier and ready for summer graduation.”

“For the last several years in Warwick, we’ve done a seniors only summer school, but it was definitely a challenge with the numbers,” said Kane.

While Kane does expect to see some stragglers, he pointed out that the graduation rate for summer school hovers right around 95 percent.

The biggest challenge Kane predicts is maintaining good communication with families. “When you’re dealing with this number of kids, it’s difficult. But our goal is to keep strong communication with families.”

Warwick Schools is also running a math program at Toll Gate High School in August for incoming ninth graders.

“Our goal is that students recover as much as they possibly can,” said Kane. “And when we’re all back in person next year it’s a clean slate.”