About Shine

Shine supports families from under-resourced communities in order to combat summer learning loss and boost student achievement. The program provides a dynamic curriculum, top-notch facilities, passionate educators, fun excursions, and other resources, at no cost to participating families. Shine serves about 100 kids in grades 1–8.

The bulk of the programming occurs during the summer, though there are some events during school year. A key ingredient of the program's success is sustained engagement, with students returning each summer as they progress from 1st grade to 8th grade. Shine is a subsidiary program of Trinity Episcopal School of Austin, a nonprofit, independent PK–8 school in southwest Austin, Texas. Trinity sees itself as a private school with a public purpose to serve the broader community.

Shine's curriculum encompasses math, reading, science, engineering/design, art, swimming, and more. Students also go on weekly field trips to extend their in-classroom explorations to the outside world. Teachers at Title 1 public schools in Austin nominate families to be selected for the program. The students return year after year until they reach high school, and this multi-year commitment is what makes the program so successful at closing the achievement gap, combating summer learning loss, and reducing school drop-out rates.

With a student-teacher ratio of 5:1, kids get an engaging experience that builds confidence and crucial skills. The results of the program speak for themselves, with measurable improvements in literacy and mathematics. And those gains carry through to high school and beyond — 99% of participants graduate high school and 91% attend college or post-secondary training.