The Summer Struggle for Everyday Families

Summer is an opportunity for exploration and growth—young people outside, making new friends, trying new things, and deepening their skills. But for many parents today, summer can bring on stress and worry about whether they'll be able to find and afford the opportunities they want for their kids. 

This report dives into the unmet demand for summer learning programming and provides new insights into parents’ attitudes and priorities related to summer learning. The Afterschool Alliance's 5th edition of America After 3PM, conducted with Edge Research, provides insight into the existing barriers preventing many families, particularly those earning low to middle incomes, from participating in summer learning opportunities.

The survey finds that the parents of 24.6 million children want structured summer experiences, such as a summer enrichment or sports program, summer camp, summer school, or job or internship, for their child. Yet half (51 percent) of these children are left out of programming. 

Affordability remains the most significant barrier to summer learning accessibility. Almost 4 in 10 families identified cost as a key barrier to enrolling their child in a summer learning program. Low-and middle-income families are much more likely than high-income families to say that cost was a factor in their decision not to enroll their child in a program. Low- and middle-income families are also twice as likely as high-income families to report that summer programs are not available in their community. 

The study also examines parent attitudes about summer learning. Parents identified safety and program staff as the most important factors in selecting a program for their child. And time outdoors, being active, less time on screens, opportunities to build confidence, and participation in a variety of activities are higher on parents’ summer list of priorities compared to the school year.

Support for public funding for summer programs is strong, with a majority of parents (89 percent) expressing support for these opportunities. This support crosses demographic and political lines. Additionally, across demographic, political, and race/ethnicity lines, the majority of parents agree that all young people deserve access to quality afterschool and summer programs. 

For more data on afterschool, summer learning, and resources, visit America After 3PM. This America After 3PM special report is based on research funded by The Wallace Foundation. The full America After 3PM report was made possible through partnership with the New York Life Foundation.