KT Receives Summer Matters Grant

Kingdom Trails was recently selected to receive $27,380 in funding from the Summer Matters for All Grant program. According to Governor Phil Scott, the Summer Matters for All Grant Program will award up to $3.85 million to programs in 13 counties with the goal of expanding access to summer enrichment opportunities for K-12 youth this summer.

The proposed Summer program partners with the Kingdom East School district to provide students the opportunity to participate in nature exploration hikes or mini-mountain bike camps 4 days a week, for five weeks of their summer on the Kingdom Trails network. The Kingdom East Summer Program seeks to re-engage students with school through providing free programming, food and transportation via bus to the program. KT will also provide added capacity to the school district to provide afternoon nature and bike camps to interested students, which will engage more students to attend the programming and help them connect with peers they’ve been separated from, and heal through healthy movement and outdoor activities on our trails. 

Morgan Moore, Kingdom East’s Summer School Program Director, is excited about the partnership with Kingdom Trails, and the Summer Matters grant. The Kingdom East Summer Camp is serving students from all eight Kingdom East schools. According to Morgan, “This partnership is exciting because it expanded access to mountain biking, allowing students in the Kingdom to try a new sport, or practice one they love. It is meeting the school district’s goal of keeping kids active and engaged this summer, and KTA’s goal of providing educational opportunities. Forty students will mountain bike with Kingdom East and Kingdom Trails every Monday-Thursday for the five weeks of camp, and more students will bike for full days on Fridays. This means that over 250 students will have access to mountain biking this summer due to the partnership!”

Governor Scott has put an emphasis on helping Vermont kids recover from the pandemic and the isolation it caused, including creating opportunities for them to safely reconnect with their peers and their communities. The purpose of the grant program is to increase access to summer enrichment opportunities for K-12 youth statewide during Summer 2021. This was a highly competitive process with 188 proposals submitting $7,427,584 in requests, which far exceeded available funds. 

The grants, funded by federal dollars secured by Senator Bernie Sanders and administered by Vermont Afterschool, were awarded to a variety of programs, including summer camps, libraries, municipalities, teen centers, non-profit social services organizations and more, to expand the number of weeks and slots, as well as to increase affordability and accessibility of summer programs. These offerings will supplement school-based programs, as districts in Vermont received separate federal funds to support summer learning and afterschool programs.

“Summer is the perfect opportunity to help kids reconnect and recharge. We are incredibly grateful to our state leaders and policymakers for their commitment to the development of the Summer Matters for All Grant Program,” said Holly Morehouse, Executive Director of Vermont Afterschool. “With this funding, communities and youth-serving organizations across the state will be able to create a great summer for Vermont children and youth that will help them make new memories and emerge from the pandemic strong, resilient, and hopeful.”

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The Kingdom Trail Association is a nonprofit organization with the mission to provide recreation and education opportunities by managing, maintaining, and building trails to foster the health of our local community, surrounding environment, and regional economy.