Six Campuses, Two Weeks: Recapping the 2026 Summer Learning Program
What a summer! Over two weeks in late July and early August, our Summer Learning Program took a group of rising 5th and 6th graders from Chester to six different colleges and prep schools around the region, giving them a taste of college life most had never experienced before.
Program Overview: The YDU Summer Learning Program is a two-week, immersive academic and vocational exploration program designed for elementary students within the Chester Upland School District. This innovative initiative serves as an early-intervention bridge to higher education, utilizing "learning labs" at local colleges and preparatory schools to combat summer learning loss and expand the educational horizons of participants. Focusing primarily on third through fifth-grade students, the cohort traveled daily to a different college or prep school in the greater Philadelphia area. The goal is to retain more students from 5th to 6th grade, as a path to our Middle School Bridge & Achievement Program that will be launched in the spring of 2027.
30 STUDENTS • 6 CAMPUSES • 2 WEEKS • 6 OF 6 HOSTS RETURNING IN 2027
Week One kicked things off at Neumann University, where Athletic Director John Krimmel and Head Soccer Coach Erik Temple welcomed our students with open arms.
Day one of the Summer Learning Program at Neumann University.
From there it was on to The Shipley School for a day of soccer, baseball, basketball, and track and field led by Varsity Boys Soccer Coach Bradley Jule.
Getting some touches in during our day at The Shipley School.
Week One closed at Drexel University, where the Dragons' Division I men's basketball team gave our students the privilege of running a clinic with them.
Drexel Men’s Basketball Clinic at the John A. Daskalakis Athletic Center.
Week Two opened at Cairn University with a softball and soccer clinic, plus a campus tour, lunch, and academic session, then continued to Penn State Brandywine, which opened with a sports clinic before students toured the campus's Sustainable Garden.
Touring the Sustainable Garden at Penn State Brandywine.
The group at Penn State Brandywine, coordinated by Bobbi Caprice-Gallo
The program wrapped up at Swarthmore College, where Head Men's Soccer Coach Eric Wagner, Track and Field Coach Lauren Lucci, and Assistant Coach Liam Fuller ran a final day of soccer, basketball, and track and field, including a few first-ever throws of the discus, javelin, and shot put!
Overall the pilot program was a success, and we envision adding additional students next summer while increasing the camp from two to four weeks in length. Each week will begin at a tbd location in Chester/Upland on Monday, followed by daily trips Tue-Thur each week, allowing students to visit 12 different colleges or prep schools.
Summary - students traveled to six campuses across the region, Neumann University, The Shipley School, and Drexel University in Week One, then Cairn University, Penn State Brandywine, and Swarthmore College in Week Two for sports clinics, campus tours, dining hall lunches, and academic sessions. For many of the participants, it was their first real look at life beyond elementary school.
A special thanks to everyone who made it possible: Athletic Director John Krimmel and Coach Erik Temple at Neumann, Bradley Jule at Shipley, Drexel's Division I men's basketball team for running a clinic with our students, Shelby Allen and Luke Gibson at Cairn, Bobbi Caprice-Gallo at Penn State Brandywine, and Eric Wagner, Lauren Lucci, and Liam Fuller at Swarthmore. Six for six, every host has already asked us back next year and that's the kind of partnership we're building this program on.
This is just the pilot. Stay tuned for our Middle School Bridge & Achievement Program, launching soon to keep more students connected to opportunities like this one year-round. Do you know a college or prep school in the greater Philadelphia area that may be interested in a future YDU visit? If so, contact us at info@youthdevunited.org.