The nearly 5,000 students and their families participating in the Extended Learning Opportunities (ELO) program this summer will receive Learning Tool Kits (Kindergarten) and books (Grades 1-5) donated by the Montgomery County Public Schools Retirees Association (MCPSRA). The distribution will be highlighted at a press event at Harmony Hills Elementary School on Wednesday, July 28, at 10 a.m. attended by Superintendent of Schools Jerry D. Weast, members of the Board of Education, MCPSRA President Ken Muir, other program participants, parents, and students.

Retirees, along with students earning student service learning hours, joined to sort the more than 6,000 books into appropriate reading levels and prepare the learning kits that are designed to help students continue the math and literacy activities that they learned in ELO.

The four-week ELO summer program, now in its third year, is available to students in Grades K through 5 in 17 Title I schools. It is designed to help students attending schools with the highest poverty levels in Montgomery County Public Schools improve their reading, writing, and math skills in a fun and enriching setting and extend the learning process of the school year. Transportation, breakfast, and lunch also were provided to students.