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Smith makes difficult decision to end summer program
NORTHAMPTON, Mass. – As it seeks to implement some $20 million in budget reductions, including staff layoffs and reductions in faculty positions, Smith College will no longer mount Summer Adventures in Learning, the program for students in grades three through eight also known as the Smith-Northampton Summer School.
“This is a difficult decision and one that we have reached only after considerable discussion and review,” said Smith President Carol T. Christ, adding that, by announcing the program closure now, she hoped families would have time to make alternative summer plans.
The five-week, half-day program, which enrolled some 200 public and independent school students last year, wasn't able to break even many of the last ten years and required annual subsidies in the range of $30,000 in addition to the college’s teaching and administrative support.
Among the reasons for the program’s financial struggles are the proliferation of competing summer program options and the fact that many parents require full-day programs in order to meet child care needs.
Smith remains committed to its strong support of public education, including its partnerships with teachers and principals in the Northampton schools, Springfield’s Gerena Community School and other local communities. One of the most successful programs enables some 75 high school students take college-level courses at Smith every year at no cost to the students or their families.
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