This report introduces the Summer College and Career Intensive (Summer CCI), an innovative program designed to leverage an often overlooked critical time in students’ development: the summer between high school and college. To prepare students to step more confidently into college, the program integrates paid summer employment, college coursework, career-connected learning, and an orientation to navigating college into one coordinated experience. For the predominantly low-income and first-generation college students Summer CCI serves, it is the dual nature of the program – the preparation for college and careers – that makes the summer experience so valuable.

Drawing on three years of data, the report highlights promising outcomes: students who participate in Summer CCI are more likely to enroll and persist in college, and report significant growth in professional skills over the six-week program. We conclude with three recommendations for expanding the program and broadening its impact.

This report was published by The Pinkerton Foundation.