BILL NUMBER: SCR 93	INTRODUCED
	BILL TEXT


INTRODUCED BY   Senators DeSaulnier and Cedillo

                        MARCH 23, 2010

   Relative to Summer Learning and Wellness Month.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   SCR 93, as introduced, DeSaulnier. Summer Learning and Wellness
Month.
   This measure would designate July 2010 as "Summer Learning and
Wellness Month."
   Fiscal committee: no.



   WHEREAS, A child's need for meaningful learning and enrichment
experiences does not end in June when the school doors close for
summer vacation, these needs continue into and through the summer
months. Whether or not these needs are being met may boil down to a
child's neighborhood or family income level; and
   WHEREAS, All children need summer learning opportunities in order
to stay on course academically. Without ongoing summer opportunities
to reinforce and learn skills, children, especially children in
low-income communities, may fall behind dramatically in many areas of
academic achievement; and
   WHEREAS, The debilitating effect of an absence of summer learning
and enrichment is often referred to as "the summer slide." The summer
slide is characterized by measurable learning loss that includes
reading loss and significant achievement gaps between children with
lower and higher income parents; and
   WHEREAS, The summer slide affects children from low-income
families disproportionately. Unequal summer learning opportunities
during elementary school years are responsible for about two-thirds
of the ninth-grade achievement gap between youths with lower and
higher income parents. As a result, youths with low-income parents
are less likely to graduate from high school or enter college; and
   WHEREAS, While parents in California consistently cite summer as
the most difficult time to ensure that their children have productive
things to do, the supply of low-cost summer programs in California
is extremely limited relative to the number of children with
low-income parents. A 2008 study of five California cities revealed
that nearly 75 percent of children and youth are not served by the
most common providers of summer programming; and
   WHEREAS, Summer school is currently the largest provider of summer
programming in California, but budget cuts have had a devastating
effect on program availability; and
   WHEREAS, The health of many children with low-income parents is
put at risk during the summer because they lose access to healthy
school meals and organized physical activity; and
   WHEREAS, Most children gain weight more rapidly when they are out
of school for summer. Summer weight gains are especially large for
African American and Hispanic children. In California, nearly
one-third (32 percent) of 5th graders are overweight or obese; and
   WHEREAS, The national Summer Learning Day on June 21 celebrates
how summer programs send young people back to school ready to learn,
support working families, and help keep children safe and healthy;
now, therefore, be it
   Resolved by the Senate of the State of California, the Assembly
thereof concurring, That the Legislature designates July 2010 as
Summer Learning and Wellness Month; and be it further
   Resolved, That the California Legislature recognizes that all
children need fun, safe, and educational opportunities in the
summertime that prevent summer learning loss and summer weight gain;
and be it further
   Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies of this
resolution to the author for appropriate distribution.