"They want to be here:" MPS expands 'Summer Academy,' it's free summer school program

“They want to be here:” MPS expands `Summer Academy,` it`s free summer school program

"They want to be here:" MPS expands `Summer Academy,` it`s free summer school program

MILWAUKEE -- More Milwaukee Public Schools students than ever before are enrolled in summer school. The district has made some changes to the program.

MPS Summer Academy

Enrichment through the arts is a big focus of MPS' "Summer Academy."

"You actually get to enjoy it while you`re learning," Janae Meredith, sixth grade student said.

And in the classroom setting, creativity is encouraged.

"They want to be here. They don`t have to be. It is an enrichment program," Lisa Rosenberg, principal, Sherman School Summer Academy said.

MPS Summer Academy

The curriculum combines literacy, math and science. Students are able to review material and get a preview of what class will bring next year.

MPS Summer Academy

"My lowest grade in math is an 80 -- but I`m pretty sure my lowest grade for summer school is going to be higher," Meredith said.

MPS added 2,000 students to its summer school program this summer in order to meet the high demand for the program.

"We have more than doubled our number from last year," Rosenberg said.

Sherman School is a designated super site for the MPS summer Academy program. It is a new concept this year.

MPS Summer Academy

It means they can arrange bus transportation for students to get to summer school, and it means they were able to increase the number of students in the program.

MPS Summer Academy

"They sent us teachers and we expanded our, got creative with the rooms we could use," Rosenberg said.

Most are K-8 spots, but the program has been expanded at the high school level too -- setting more students up for success in September.

"Some kids are just kicking while I am here learning more than what we learned in regular school," Meredith said.

MPS' Summer Academy is free for students living in Milwaukee -- kindergarten through high school level.

You can get signed up throughout the summer at the MPS Central Services office or at your neighborhood school.