The New York Life Foundation Excellence in Summer Learning Award and NSLA Founder’s Award recognize outstanding summer programs that demonstrate excellence in accelerating academic achievement and promoting healthy development for low-income children and youth between pre-kindergarten and twelfth grade.

Since 2005, the Excellence in Summer Learning Award program has been a critical strategy of the National Summer Learning Association (NSLA) to support the growth and visibility of high-quality summer learning programs.

In 2015, NSLA introduced the Founder’s Award to further expand its reach and better document outstanding practices of unique informal or drop-in models for summer learning in the field. The awards overall provide a growing knowledge base that NSLA uses to educate policymakers, funders, and the public on best practices and standards of quality for summer learning.