nothin How LEAP Salvaged Summer | New Haven Independent

How LEAP Salvaged Summer

Maya McFadden Photo

With adjustments made for the pandemic, LEAP is running its annual free summer program this summer for 340 children and teens in part virtually, in part in-person.

The four-week program began July 6. There’s a possibility that the program could be extended to six weeks depending on how the program’s first few weeks go, said LEAP Director of Development Rachel Kline Brown.

Safety and health efforts for the kids and staff have arranged for groups of 30 kids and dedicated counselors to rotate weekly between a virtual program and an in-person program.

LEAP serves at five neighborhood sites: Dixwell, Dwight-Kensington, Fair Haven, the Hill, and Newhallville. The sixth summer site is at LEAP’s main building at 31 Jefferson St. for Leader in Training (LIT) students ages 13 – 15. Each site is at its capacity of enrolled students and has a waiting list.

The counselors and children will switch off each week between an in-person and virtual program with all in-person programming taking place outside. Each site is used for a dedicated group of 60 but hosts only half of the group in-person at a time. The children will remain with their group of 30 virtually and in-person throughout the program. While on site, students are required to wear masks. For those without a mask, reusable kid-sized masks are provided.

The Dwight-Kensington site is at Troup school, where Jasmin Williams is the site coordinator for 7 – 12-year-olds. Williams’ students played kickball around 9 a.m Wednesday for a more relaxed social time than other days. On Tuesday, Williams read a two-page article with her group about Juneteenth, melanin, and Black history before African enslavement for a curriculum activity.

Williams held up words to the students like police” and asked them what it meant to them and how it made them feel. She also asked the students to think critically about what it means to them to be a person of color.
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All of the students live in the neighborhood of their site; 95% of participants are Black and/or Latinx.

After reading and discussing the article, Williams had the students make a video about being proud to be a person of color. Each student walked down an imaginary walkway calling themselves proud” or beautiful.” Williams said, in the end, all the students chanted together we are beautiful.”

I want to create this routine of togetherness with them,” Williams said. Seeing how interested they were makes me want to push on. I’m going to continue learning so I can teach them.”

At 8 a.m the students check in with hand sanitizer and having parents check temperatures. They answer five questions about exposure to potential Covid-19 symptoms. Then they eat breakfast, drop everything and read (“DEAR” time) for 15 minutes, do an hour-and-15-minute curriculum activity, have 15-minute disinfectant time, retake temperatures, spend an hour and 15 minutes on social activity like taking a local walking trip to McDonald’s, park, or store. That’s followed by another disinfectant time, lunch, then dismissal. 

That all happens between 8 a.m and noon, four hours less than summer programs in the past.

Staff and counselors on-site also get daily temperature checks and weekly Covid tests administered by Fair Haven Community Health Center.

The virtual program is hosted from 9 a.m to 11 a.m every day. During those two hours per day, the students focus on literacy and educational activities taught by their counselors. Virtual field trips to places like museums are also offered.

Williams said she will focus her students on social and emotional development this summer to help the kids have an outlet about how they feel during the pandemic.

14-year-old LIT students.

At the LIT site on Jefferson Street Wednesday, the 30 students broke apart into smaller groups for different activities. A group of three 14-year-old girls in the site’s gardening group together said they enjoyed coming to the program in person for their first time this week much better than being virtual.

The girls said they didn’t expect to enjoy gardening as they are. I didn’t know there was so much i didn’t know about plants I walk by every day,” said Kaiden (right in above photo).

Earlier this week the girls harvested and brought home collard greens, cilantro, basil, mustard green, and blackberries. 

All three girls are returners and joined the LIT program last year. In the past, the girls said, they enjoyed learning soccer and yoga from the program.

Before the pandemic, the LIT program allowed students to learn to lead directly with younger students. Many LIT students graduate to be LEAP counselors.

It taught me how to be better with my little sister,” said Deandres (left in above photo).

It really helped me to calm my social anxiety,” said Kaiden.

The three girls agreed that LEAP has made learning fun for them and offering them the opportunity to learn necessary life skills. Kaiden said they have gotten lessons on bills, taxes, and social justice.

It taught me to be way more responsible,” said Kanai (above center). 

Deandres said she learned how to take the city bus in the past during LEAP programming. Other LIT programming in the past has included health education, PSAT prep classes, community service, swim lessons, and job exploration.

Another group of seven boys aged 14 and 15 finished are reading as a group Ghost Boys, a book about a Black boy killed by a police officer.

14 and 15 year old LIT boys reading group.


It’s good because it connects to stuff happening today so it’s real,” said one student. The group of boys attend high schools ranging from Wilbur Cross, New Haven Academy, and Career.

After reading the boys walked to Lenzi Park.

I’m just happy I can get out the house,” one student said.

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