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Switching his college choice in late June has made the summer hectic for Christopher M. Triplett, a recent graduate of Lindblom Math and Science Academy on the South Side of Chicago.

On his own financially and the first in his family to go to college, Christopher has relied on his school counselor, Karen M. Fitzpatrick, to make sure everything gets done so he can attend Virginia State University in the fall. He had to submit his financial-aid documents three times and had trouble logging into the online housing system for the Petersburg, Va., college. But, with his counselor鈥檚 help, Christopher said he is 鈥�99 percent鈥� sure he will report to VSU in August.

鈥淚鈥檓 ready to go. I鈥檓 focused. I know what I need to do,鈥� he said.

Low-income and first-generation college students, in particular, can lose momentum when they leave the support system of high school. They are at risk of a phenomenon that educators call the 鈥渟ummer melt"鈥攚hen students who leave high school with college plans never make it to campus in the fall.

Cost, anxiety about leaving home, and difficulty understanding all the college forms and requirements are among the most common reasons that students drop off the college track over the summer. Researchers Benjamin L. Castleman and Lindsay C. Page that the summer melt can be as high as 40 percent in some urban districts and 10 percent to 15 percent for students nationwide.

High school counselors have long known that summer was a 鈥渃razy time鈥� to close their doors since students can hit so many barriers before enrolling in college, said Laura Owen, an assistant professor in the department of counseling and school psychology at San Diego State University. 鈥淐ounselors intuitively knew that some of their students didn鈥檛 show up in the fall, but they didn鈥檛 realize how pervasive the issue was.鈥�

With the new data and the push to get more students from disadvantaged backgrounds to and through college, counselors from K-12, higher education, and nonprofits are trying different strategies to make sure high school graduates matriculate to college. They are expanding summer office hours, hosting transition workshops, reaching out with technology, and even providing luggage and transportation to campus.

But, according to Ms. Owen, what students crave the most over the summer is 鈥渃onnection to a human being.鈥� While communicating with social media and other technology can be effective, many need a caring adult to help navigate what can be a scary and complex transition from high school to college.

Connecting With Students

In Chicago, Ms. Fitzpatrick attempts to contact all her recent graduates with college plans鈥攕ome 90 percent鈥攁nd, using an online spreadsheet, goes though a list of detailed questions to see if they have done everything to enroll. 鈥淪ometimes, they don鈥檛 realize what they need,鈥� she said. Plus, tracking the students gives the district some hard numbers to help figure out what works.

Lindsay K. Brown, a school counselor at John Hope College Preparatory High School in Chicago where about half of graduates go on to college, said her students are so mobile that it can be hard to locate them over the summer to walk them through the college process. Some are tempted to put off going because they are earning 鈥渞eal money鈥� for the first time, she said. Others get tripped up over transportation.

Ms. Brown said she builds a relationship of trust with her students so they are able to tell her what they need and work through potential barriers. She has pooled her money with other teachers鈥� to drive students to college or buy bus or plane tickets. At a send-off celebratory party every August, she gives needy students donated luggage so they don鈥檛 have to bring their belongings in trash bags.

鈥淵ou have to keep encouraging them,鈥� said Ms. Brown. 鈥淭ake whatever steps that you can take within your power to make sure they are successful stepping on that campus in August.鈥�

Although awareness of summer melt is growing, efforts to address it are still too isolated and not reaching enough low-income and students of color to level the playing field, said Christina L. Theokas, the director of research for the , a nonprofit advocacy group in Washington. College-transition and -bridge programs are useful, but a huge gap still exists for low-income and first-generation students.

鈥淲e need to think about coherence across K-12 and higher ed. in terms of where responsibility is going to be placed,鈥� said Ms. Theokas, noting that each sector often thinks the other is doing the programming. 鈥淭his leaves all these kids unsupported who could be successful in college,鈥� she added.

Pop-Up Advising

To stem summer melt in the Kansas City metropolitan area, Victor A. Bradford, a college-transition and -retention coach for the University of Missouri, helps operate the , in the second year of providing free advising to college-bound students from June through August.The center uses in-kind space at Metropolitan Community College and receives support from the Greater Kansas City Foundation. High schools that have partnered with the project provide lists of seniors (1,343 this year), and where they intend to enroll in the fall, for the center staff to call. Mr. Bradford also gets the word out about the center鈥檚 services through social media and announcements on a local hip-hop station.

鈥淭he main hang-up is financial aid. They don鈥檛 understand the extra paperwork that needs to be submitted,鈥� said Mr. Bradford of the income- and tax-verification process required to get government grants. When needed, counselors work to explain to students, who are often fearful of loans, that borrowing for education can be a good investment.

The center maintains a small emergency fund to give students up to $500 for such expenses as orientation fees or housing deposits. 鈥淟ast-minute financial needs can keep them from going to college,鈥� said Mr. Bradford of the students, about 80 percent of whom qualify for free or reduced-price lunch.

Greyson Norcross,who works with high school students in a rural area of southern Pennsylvania through the College Advising Corps, made a to provide practical information on topics such as study strategies and staying healthy in college for recent high school graduates.

Through an exit survey of about 550 seniors, Mr. Norcross got about 200 students to sign up for his new summer transition program. He sends out emails and short messages on social media to keep students on track and meets with any who need help on nearby college campuses.

鈥淢y goal is to promote the overall preparedness of the kids so they don鈥檛 feel sidelined during the first week of classes,鈥� said Mr. Norcross.

Julian Lopez, a graduate of Biglerville High School in Pennsylvania, credits Mr. Norcross with helping him obtain a full-ride scholarship to Georgetown University in Washington and sitting down for more than two hours this summer to help him schedule his fall classes. 鈥淣either of my parents went to college, so I鈥檝e relied on friends鈥� parents or Greyson,鈥� said Julian.

Local Workshops

Other organizations, such as the , a privately financed nonprofit organization in Washington, host large workshops on the precollege experience covering everything from time management to roommate issues to how students from diverse backgrounds can adapt to life at a predominately white university.

DiLexxus Mathis, a graduate of McKinley Technology High School in the District of Columbia, was among about 800 students who attended a DC-CAP workshop in mid-July that was partly a pep rally, of sorts, to motivate recent graduates to make it to college in the fall. (About 30 percent of participants melt over the summer for a variety of reasons, and the number has been fairly consistent since the program began 16 years ago.)

Although DC-CAP advisers are off six weeks in the summer, adviser Schelly Mitchell said she continues to help her high school students. 鈥淚n education, your job just doesn鈥檛 stop,鈥� she said. 鈥淚f you aren鈥檛 physically on the phone or on the computer, they are always on your mind. You want the best for your kids.鈥�

DiLexxus, who has no family financial support and is living with a friend, has leaned on Ms. Mitchell and counselors in the DC-CAP main office to help find the remaining dollars needed to pay for $40,000 in tuition for Temple University in Philadelphia.

鈥淪he is my confidant,鈥� said DiLexxus of Ms. Mitchell, who has been her adviser since she was a freshman. 鈥淚 can鈥檛 describe how amazing she is and how grateful I am. She wouldn鈥檛 allow me to give up.鈥�

The admiration is mutual.

鈥淪he has a drive to succeed despite her circumstances and despite her lack of support and despite her living situation,鈥� Ms. Mitchell said of DiLexxus. 鈥淭he gift that she will give back to me is that I will come to her graduation.鈥�