Sage Hill Student Creates Initiative to Help Underserved Students Benefit from Summer Education
Sage Hill Student Creates Initiative to Help Underserved Students Benefit from Summer Education
Sage Hill sophomore Farooq Ansari is passionate about education and inspiring underserved students to take advantage of summer learning so they will not fall behind in upcoming academic years. Last year, Ansari started a club and created a website – Solving the Summer Learning Gap – to tackle this issue and raise awareness throughout Orange County.
This year, after a rousing Town Meeting speech about the importance of summer education to transform the lives of underserved students, Ansari’s club grew to more than 24 members. Ansari noted that interest in his efforts “shows how Sage Hill students care for the community and understand the deeper issues that lie at the root of the gap in our education system that pervades so many of our communities.”
Fellow sophomore Alfonso Sanchez, Jr., the co-vice president of the club, agrees. “When I found out about Farooq’s club I thought his approach to solving it and raising awareness was really comprehensive and I thought it would be effective so I was motivated to join his club,” he said.
Ansari decided to take action after reading Canadian journalist Malcolm Gladwell’s book, “Outliers: The Story of Success” where Gladwell suggests long summer breaks are detrimental to the U.S. education system and cause achievement gaps.
The Solving the Summer Learning Gap club is moving forward and its members are planning on raising awareness of the summer learning issue at local Orange County schools. They will teach and inspire students to be motivated to academically stimulate themselves during the summer months. The club also plans on organizing its own conference and inviting local, state, and national leaders who are involved in education. Visit Solving the Summer Learning Gap for more information.
This year, after a rousing Town Meeting speech about the importance of summer education to transform the lives of underserved students, Ansari’s club grew to more than 24 members. Ansari noted that interest in his efforts “shows how Sage Hill students care for the community and understand the deeper issues that lie at the root of the gap in our education system that pervades so many of our communities.”
Fellow sophomore Alfonso Sanchez, Jr., the co-vice president of the club, agrees. “When I found out about Farooq’s club I thought his approach to solving it and raising awareness was really comprehensive and I thought it would be effective so I was motivated to join his club,” he said.
Ansari decided to take action after reading Canadian journalist Malcolm Gladwell’s book, “Outliers: The Story of Success” where Gladwell suggests long summer breaks are detrimental to the U.S. education system and cause achievement gaps.
The Solving the Summer Learning Gap club is moving forward and its members are planning on raising awareness of the summer learning issue at local Orange County schools. They will teach and inspire students to be motivated to academically stimulate themselves during the summer months. The club also plans on organizing its own conference and inviting local, state, and national leaders who are involved in education. Visit Solving the Summer Learning Gap for more information.
Sage Hill School
Sage Hill School admits students of any race, color, national and ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the School. The School does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national and ethnic origin in administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship programs, and athletic and other School administered programs.