Lakeside Educational Enrichment Program (LEEP)

LEEP is a free four-week summer program designed for Seattle Public School students entering grades 6 or 9 in fall 2023. Through engaging and fun activities and classes, LEEP aims to build students' confidence, excitement about school and learning, prepare students for middle or high school academics, and connect with new friends.

LEEP 2023 runs July 10-Aug. 4, Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-3 p.m.

Apply for LEEP

72% of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch.

Rising 6th graders in 2022 self-identified their primary race/ethnicity as the following.

Rising 9th graders in 2022 self-identified their primary race/ethnicity as the following.

Important Dates

Feb. 1, 2023: LEEP application opens.

Feb. 8, 6-7 p.m.: Information session on Zoom.
RSVP at https://bit.ly/3Il9pyR.

Feb. 15, 6-7 p.m.: Information session on Zoom. RSVP at https://bit.ly/3GBdjCF.

March 4, 12-1 p.m.: Information session in person at Lakeside Upper School campus, 14050 1st Ave NE, Seattle. RSVP to leep@lakesideschool.org.

April 1, 2023: LEEP application deadline.

May 1, 2023: LEEP decisions sent.

July 10-Aug. 4: LEEP 2023 dates. The program runs Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-3 p.m.; full attendance is required.

Oct. 2023-April 2024: LEEP school year cohort events will be held the first Saturday of each month.

Admissions and How to Apply

Applications for LEEP 2023 opened on Feb. 1, 2023.

If you are a current 5th or 8th grader in the Seattle Public School district, we encourage you to apply to LEEP!

LEEP gives motivated students the chance to work with experienced teachers, supportive counselors, and a dynamic peer group in an enriching summer program. LEEP students are positive, respectful, proactive, fun, reflective, and future-thinking. They are students looking for opportunities to refine their academic skills, to connect with new friends and teachers, to step outside their comfort zone, and to become more well-rounded.

LEEP works closely with SPS counselors and teachers to help students navigate the application process. If your student is interested in applying, we recommend communicating that interest to your school's counselor or principal.

How to Apply

How to Apply

Read below for details on what is included in a LEEP application. Watch a video tutorial here.

LEEP has an online application. To apply:

Visit www.ravenna-hub.com and create an account.
Follow the instructions to create a student profile for the applicant.
Find LEEP in the School Directory and click the green "apply" button.
View all required application forms in Ravenna (see below for details).

A complete LEEP application includes:

Family Information Form: filled out and submitted online. This form asks for basic information (like address, current school, preferred bus stop, etc.).
Student Responses: filled out and submitted online. Students will share why they are interested in LEEP.
Parent/Guardian Responses: filled out and submitted online. Parents/guardians will share why they are interested in LEEP. If needed, others can translate parent/guardian responses by typing for them.
Personal Reference: this form should be sent to a teacher, counselor, or mentor (not a family member). Enter the reference's email in Ravenna, and the online form will be emailed to them.
Records Request Form: print this form, sign it, and give to the student's current school. This form allows the current school to send current grades to LEEP.

FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

Who can apply for LEEP?
LEEP is open to current 5th or 8th graders in Seattle Public Schools. For students outside the district, consider Lakeside's Summer School Programs or Summer Link at The Overlake School.

How long is the application?
Completing the family information and student responses will take only a few hours. Academic references and school records requests may take a day or longer.

How does LEEP serve students in West or South Seattle?
LEEP offers free daily transportation for students. Bus stops are at SPS schools and Seattle community centers and libraries. Buses run every day LEEP is in session.

When are accepted students notified?
Students accepted to LEEP will be contacted on May 1.

Cost

Transportation

A route sign on a yellow school bus reading "LEEP"

LEEP partners with First Student to provide free bus transportation to and from the Lakeside campus. Bus stops are at SPS schools and Seattle community centers and libraries. Buses run every day LEEP is in session during the summer, and on Saturday sessions held at Lakeside during the school year. Depending on where a student lives and which bus stop is selected, families should plan for an additional 15-90 minutes of time spent on the bus.

Attendance

Student Body

In 2022, we enrolled approximately 40 students in the 5th-to-6th grade cohort, and 60 students in the 8th-to-9th grade cohort.

The LEEP student body is academically, ethnically, culturally, and socioeconomically diverse. Members of the 2022 cohort came from 36 different Seattle Public Schools middle schools or K-8s. Ninety-four percent identified as a student of color, 52% spoke a second language (Amharic, Arabic, Cambodian, Chinese, French, Japanese, Korean, Mongolian, Oromo, Portuguese, Spanish, Somali, Swahili, Tagalog, Tamil, Tigrinya, Thai, and Vietnamese) at home, and 72 percent qualified for free and reduced-price lunch.

LEEP Values

Contact

The LEEP Experience

Rising 6th Grade Program

Academics

Students will learn in interdisciplinary courses that offer the appropriate level of challenge and support. Skills such as organization, time management, self-advocacy, and habits of mind will be emphasized.

LEEP focuses on habits of mind and leadership development. The curriculum fosters critical thinking, persistence, and resilience. Instruction is student-centered, asking students to reflect upon themselves and to consider other perspectives. Classes are single-gender.

Digital Life

Swimming & Activities

Outdoor Education

Rising 9th Grade Program

Academics

LEEP helps prepare students for high-school level academics. Students learn in interdisciplinary courses that offer the appropriate level of challenge and support. Summer classes are small, with approximately 18 students led by an experienced teacher and two college-aged counselors. Classes help students learn organization, time management, self-advocacy, and leadership skills.

Digital Life

Crew, Service Learning & Outdoor Programming

Stand and Deliver

Stand and Deliver presentations are a hallmark of the program. All members of the LEEP community, staff and students, make a three- to five-minute presentation before the entire group. These can take the form of poetry, stories, speeches, or playing a musical instrument. Stand and Deliver can be intensely personal and challenging, but it remains an important LEEP experience and a bonding activity.

School-Year Program

LEEP continues during the school year to help students build skills and access support in meeting their middle or high school's academic requirements. Students attend seasonal Saturday sessions between October and April.

Sessions are a chance for students to reconnect with their cohort, as well as provide a touch point for academic support in the form of activity days or class days. Activity days offer an assortment of social activities, service learning, and/or college and career preparation depending on a student's grade level. Class days are modified academic days that mirror aspects of a LEEP summer day.

Learn more

History

In 1965, the Lakeside Educational Enrichment Program (LEEP) was created by Dan Ayrault, Jim Steil, and Pete Steil as a partnership between Lakeside School and Seattle Public Schools (SPS).

The program has continued every summer, and has served more than 3,600 students to date. While there have been some changes, including the addition of a school-year component, the objectives have remained the same. Students then and now remember the commitment of LEEP staff, the opportunity to connect with other students in the Seattle area, and the activities that help them develop a new understanding of what they can accomplish. LEEP is successful because of the dedication of teachers and counselors, the engagement of LEEP students and graduates, the support of SPS middle school counselors, and the backing of Lakeside School.

Support LEEP

LEEP is supported entirely by private contributions. The costs of tuition, transportation, food, instructional materials, and athletic equipment are fully covered; students are able to participate entirely free of tuition and fees. The Lakeside Parents and Guardians Association (PGA) has been LEEP’s longest-continuous supporter, in addition to several private donors, restricted endowment funds, and a generous grant from the Nintendo Corporation in 1992.

Make a donation to support the future success of LEEP.