CLEVELAND — As the City of Cleveland’s Chief of Youth and Family Success, Sonya Pryor-Jones said she wants to ensure families have the support they need this summer.

What You Need To Know

  • As the City of Cleveland’s Chief of Youth and Family Success, Sonya Pryor-Jones said she wants to ensure families have the support they need this summer

  • The city is partnering with leaders in Cleveland schools and other organizations to offer a wide range of academic, recreational and fun summer programs for local youth

  • In an effort to spread the word about the programs available as widely as possible, city and CMSD leaders, including CEO Warren Morgan, have spent time going door-to-door to talk with students and parents

“We are making sure that there are over 7,000 opportunities for young people to get involved and fun engaging opportunities all summer long,” she said.

The city is partnering with leaders in Cleveland schools and other organizations to offer a wide range of academic, recreational and fun summer programs for local youth.

In an effort to spread the word about the programs available as widely as possible, city and CMSD leaders, including CEO Warren Morgan, have spent time going door-to-door to talk with students and parents. 

“We want to make sure our students are not experiencing any summer loss,” Morgan said. “We saw from last school year that we had some great gains from the previous school year. So, heading into next year, we want to make sure students are ready and are ready to build on that momentum of all the academic gains that they had last year.”

Pryor-Jones said beyond helping to ensure student’s success, canvassing about these programs provides an opportunity for parents to have a listening ear. 

“Some families are also expressing this, sharing things that aren't going well or other supports that they need,” Pryor-Jones said. “And when that's the case, they have a direct communication with staff members from the city or the school district, and we're able to address their problem as well as connect them to additional social support services that they might need.”

She said she grew up here with young parents, who were able to raise her well because of their strong support system.

“All of our families don't have that,” she said. “And so it is really critical that our community as a whole come together, support our families, because it really does take a village to help raise children. No matter where you live, no matter what your zip code is.”

You can find more information about CMSD’s summer offerings here, and the city’s summer rec catalog here.