Ms. Lasinski developed the ThinkStretch Summer Learning Program to link school and home over the summer, taking the burden off the parent. Schools were thrilled with the content and academic quality of the review materials. Students loved the Professor and his Brain and the fun graphic adventure in each book. And the medals in the fall were appreciated by parents, students and teachers!
While working a few years ago to address the achievement gaps between student groups in the Ann Arbor Public School district, Donna Lasinski, creator of the ThinkStretch Summer Learning Program, was surprised to learn that two-thirds of the achievement gap between a high-performing and a low-performing high school student is what they do during the summers of their elementary school years.
“It started to formulate in my mind that we shouldn’t be leaving all this learning on the table. We shouldn’t just end the school year and walk away, leaving students and families to just fend for themselves all summer,” says Lasinski, who also chairs the Ann Arbor PTO Council and professionally advocates for the needs of young children.
The longtime volunteer has served as either a PTO president or treasurer for the last six years, and holds a couple of business degrees: an MBA from Northwestern University and a BBA from the University of Michigan.
Pulling together teachers, materials, national academic standards, parents and students, Ms. Lasinski tackled the key obstacles to summer learning.
- Teachers were strapped for time to put together summer review packets.
- Parents felt isolated over the summer with no direction from the schools.
- Students were frustrated by the large, overwhelming review books some parents bought.
Since its initial pilot in the summer of 2007, the ThinkStretch Summer Learning Program has been nominated for and Excellence in Summer Learning award through the John Hopkins Summer Learning Center. In addition, it has won an Excellence in Education Innovation honor from an education foundation.
Keeping to its social mission of trying to get the program into as many student’s hands as possible in order to close the achievement gap, the ThinkStretch Summer Learning Program is priced well below competitors. Ms. Lasinski strongly believes that every student should have the opportunity to keep their skills over the summer and return to school ready to learn.
