SESSION TYPE: Featured Speaker (Panel) SESSION TITLE: Summer Learning and the Achievement Gap STRAND: Whole School Issues DAY: Saturday TIME: 8:30 - 9:45 am LOCATION: Nassau Suite, 2nd floor

Summer learning loss affects nearly all young people. The types and amounts of losses vary, but overall, result in long-term, life-altering consequences. Research confirms that two-thirds of the achievement gap between lower- and higher-income children is explained by unequal access to summer learning opportunities during the elementary school years.

Learn more about the importance of summer learning for all children and how some programs are successfully using the time to close the achievement gap.

BIOGRAPHY


Richard Berlin, Executive Director at Harlem RBI since 1997, is also a founding member of Harlem RBI’s DREAM Charter School. Mr. Berlin began his connection with Harlem RBI as a volunteer baseball coach in 1994. Mr. Berlin holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science from the University of Wisconsin at Madison and attended a Master’s Program in Political Theory at the London School of Economics and Political Science in London, England. Additionally, he has completed certificate programs at Columbia University’s Institute for Not-for-Profit Management in both Non-Profit Management and Leadership Development. Mr. Berlin has also been a Leadership Fellow at the Citizen’s Committee for the Children of New York City.

Mr. Berlin is an adjunct faculty member at The New School University’s Robert J. Milano Graduate School of Management and Urban Policy, and currently serves as the Co-Chair of the Council of Community and College Leaders at the Center for After School Excellence, and sits on the Board of the National Summer Learning Association and Up2Us, a National Sports-Based Youth Development Advocacy organization.

Lorna Smith has been with Horizons National for 6 years. In her role as ED, she has traveled multiple times to each affiliate site to monitor progress and conduct workshops and seminars. She brings a unique combination of personal and professional experience to her role as Executive Director of Horizons National. Her extensive professional experience in client service and entrepreneurial business endeavors position her well to support the diverse regional needs of existing Horizons Affiliates while identifying and implementing new programs. In addition, Ms. Smith brings market research expertise to the organization’s critical evaluation practices. A graduate of Wellesley College, Ms. Smith also holds an MBA from Cornell.

Beth Porter has worked for Breakthrough for 13 years in the development, sustainability and program departments. In those years she has raised millions of dollars from foundations, corporations, individuals and government sources, and has supported numerous local Breakthrough sites in strategic and development planning, board development and partnership building. Beth brings 19 years of non-profit management experience to her position and has worked in education, arts and political action organizations. Beth has her B.A. in Sociology and Japanese from Middlebury College and her M.A. in Asia Pacific Studies from the University of San Francisco. Beth serves as an Advisory Board Member for the National Partnership for Educational Access, as a class agent for Middlebury College, and as a girl scout leader. When she is not at Breakthrough, she is kept busy by her two- and four-footed children.