Brandon Brown and Fred Payne: Keep Indiana leading by investing in summer learning

“An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.”

Benjamin Franklin may have said that a few centuries ago, but it comes to mind for us as we follow the Indiana legislative session this spring. We know legislators work hard to ensure taxpayer dollars are invested in programs and initiatives across our state that make Indiana a vibrant place to learn, live and work.

Following the pandemic, our state rightfully distributed $150 million to different educational programs across Indiana through the Learning Recovery Grant. One of those programs was Indy Summer Learning Labs, a joint initiative between The Mind Trust and United Way of Central Indiana.

We know our legislators care about return on investment, and over two years, Indy Summer Learning Labs has proven that every penny invested has been well spent. That is why we are urging lawmakers to renew the Learning Recovery Grant, which will continue to fund effective educational opportunities for Indiana’s students.

The story of ISLL is really a story about how our community came together with a solution and the state matched that solution with the necessary resources to collaboratively impact thousands of students. To help mitigate pandemic-related learning loss, United Way and The Mind Trust created ISLL, a five-week, free or low-cost summer program where students receive rigorous instruction in math and reading that is balanced with fun, daily enrichment activities. The two not-for-profits worked together to support schools and community-based organizations across Marion County with program implementation.

An initial investment from the state’s Learning Recovery Fund meant we were able to serve almost 3,000 students at 38 learning sites in summer 2021 and 5,000 students at 36 sites in summer 2022. Family demand was clear. But for us, it was equally important that this program was achieving the results we hoped for.

The evidence speaks for itself: ISLL is a proven method for accelerating student learning. Results from the first two years indicate that learning gains outpaced what was occurring even before the pandemic. In 2022, we saw:

◗ A 25-percentage-point increase in basic and proficient scores for English/language arts from pre- to post-assessment.

◗ A 24-percentage-point increase in basic and proficient scores for math from pre- to post-assessment.

Moreover, the students who needed this intervention the most were the very students who benefitted the most.

These outcomes are bolstered by a study from the Indiana Department of Education looking at Learning Recovery Grant award impacts. It found “statistically significant gains in learning above pre-pandemic rates of learning” for students who participated in ISLL compared with their peers who did not.

ISLL helped inspire Bloomberg Philanthropies to create a similar initiative for New York City students last year that has now expanded to eight cities. ISLL can continue to be a nationwide model that accelerates students to achieve at high levels. This is the kind of program that can make us all unequivocally proud to be Hoosiers.

This is also the moment to double down on what is working. Families want this. The program is getting results for kids. Schools, community partners and teachers are eager to serve students for a third year this summer. While we continue to find local and national philanthropic support, we can safeguard the long-term sustainability of initiatives like ISLL by renewing the Learning Recovery Grant and our state’s commitment to accelerating learning for our most vulnerable students.

The pandemic need not define what is possible for the current generation of Indiana students. Instead, programs like ISLL accelerate learning so students have the knowledge and skills to define what is possible for themselves.

Our program and city won’t be the only beneficiaries. The grant will continue to support evidence-based programs across the state. In our view, money is well spent when it fosters community partnerships, learning and opportunities for students to thrive year-round. After all, investments in student knowledge pay the best type of interest.•

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Brown is CEO of The Mind Trust. Payne is CEO of the United Way of Central Indiana.