While the majority of students and teachers celebrate the beginning of vacation today, not everyone in the Auburn school district is off for the summer. In fact, July and August are very busy months for a number of district employees and students.

Immediately following the Fourth of July holiday, the OASIS and Kindergarten Readiness programs will begin at Genesee Elementary School.

Designed to strengthen reading, language and math skills for elementary students who need additional instruction, this highly effective program features a small student to instructor ratio.

Administrative interns, Tiffany Squires and Steven Howard, will lead the four-week program. Funding is provided through Partnership for Results and the Auburn Enlarged City School District.

Traditional summer school will be held at Auburn High School beginning July 5 and running through mid-August. Administered by Cayuga Onondaga BOCES, the program offers make-up and enrichment courses for students in grades 7-12. Please contact David Hintz of BOCES at 253-0361 for more information.

Other departments are very busy as well. For the buildings and grounds crew, summer is a great time to take care of maintenance issues that are difficult to address while school is in session.

Wireless computer connections are being installed at Auburn High, and select areas in school buildings will be painted. Preventive maintenance will be performed in all facilities.

The staff also is repairing the turf on the football field at Holland Stadium and working on all facilities and athletic fields.

Thanks to a collaborative effort among the district's varsity coaches and the Maroon Sports Boosters, a number of sports camps will be held throughout the summer for Auburn Enlarged City School District students.

These camps provide a great opportunity for student athletes to hone their skills and keep in shape.

Camps being held for boys include basketball, football, lacrosse, tennis, track/cross country and wrestling.

Girls can participate in camps for basketball, field hockey, lacrosse, tennis, track/cross country, soccer and softball. For more information, please contact Jeanne Jakaub at 255-8817.

The school district is also involved in several community ventures.

On Saturday, July 22, cyclists from around the country will congregate at Auburn High School to register for the annual Bon Ton Roulet bicycle tour sponsored by the Auburn YMCA.

That evening participants can camp on the school grounds.

Cyclists will tour the Finger Lakes area, averaging 50 miles per day, before returning to Auburn the following Saturday.

In late July, West Middle School will be the temporary home of approximately 400 teen and adult volunteers from around the country who will be in Auburn to perform community service projects.

The visitors' goal is to help 70 needy homeowners by providing free minor house repairs such as painting, building wheelchair ramps and fixing porches. Most participants are affiliated with a church youth group and have raised funds in their hometowns to pay for their trip to Auburn.

They will be sleeping on classroom floors and eating meals at West. The local sponsor of the project is The Episcopal Church of Saints Peter and John with support from Group Workcamps.

Summer is also a very active time for the Auburn Education Foundation. Its third annual Golf Classic will be held on Monday, July 31, at Highland Park Golf Course.

This event continues to grow in popularity. Interested golfers should contact the AEF office at 255-8827. Proceeds will benefit the AEF's educator grants program.

In two years, the Foundation has supported 19 creative projects and partnered with several community organizations on special programs.

The Foundation is also piloting an innovative college opportunity program with the assistance of a Columbian Foundation grant.

Recent college graduates, Rebecca Armstrong (Colgate University) and Amy Barrette (Lemoyne College and Cayuga Community College), will work with executive director Leslie Leary and participating middle and high school students to develop this program over the summer.

West Middle School teacher, Cari Adams, and her art students hope to lend their talents to Genesee Elementary School to design and decorate the new Leveled Reading Room.

Sponsored by an AEF grant, the room houses a series of books of increasing difficulty designed to challenge young readers as their skills improve. Teachers hope to make it a more inviting and comfortable place for students in the fall.

Leslie Leary is a foundation consultant for the Auburn Education Foundation