21ST century community learning centers program

The Department of Education Delaware received a $6,548,640 formula grant from the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Elementary and Secondary Education under the Twenty-First Century Community Learning Centers program (CFDA 84.287) for the period July 1, 2025 through September 30, 2026. This program funds the establishment and expansion of community learning centers that provide academic enrichment and developmental services to school-aged children, particularly those attending high-poverty and low-performing schools. As the state educational agency and primary recipient, the Department of Education Delaware distributed sub-grants to multiple implementing organizations across Delaware to deliver comprehensive out-of-school time programming.

The sub-awarded funding supports after-school and summer learning programs delivered by five categories of service providers: The Summer Learning Collaborative Inc., University of Delaware, Capital SD (Dover area school district), Freire Charter School Wilmington Inc., and Boys & Girls Clubs of Delaware Inc. These sub-grantees collectively serve students in grades K-12 across multiple school districts and charter schools with targeted academic support in literacy, mathematics, and STEM; enrichment activities including arts, music, and dance; mentoring and leadership development; tutoring for at-risk students; and wellness programs addressing social-emotional learning. Programs specifically target low-income and underserved student populations, with initiatives designed to reverse summer learning loss, close achievement gaps, improve graduation rates, and foster student engagement and academic success.