A Summer Program to Assist Diverse, Urban Adolescent Writers in Becoming College and Career Ready

The authors describe and analyze the strengths and challenges of a 10‐year summer writing program that provides out‐of‐school academic support for adolescent writers who are not yet college and career ready. The two‐week program takes place at the university where faculty and school district English language arts teachers work with approximately 50 students to assist them in constructing argumentative essays. Among the strengths of the program are the research base of the writing instruction and the low teacher–student ratio that allows teachers to provide small‐group and one‐on‐one support for students’ writing. Challenges have related to assisting teachers in understanding and using the writing instructional model and transferring that model into their regular classrooms during the school year.