Coalition for Community Schools

What is the Coalition for Community Schools?
The Coalition for Community Schools is an alliance of more than 170 organizations, including family support networks, youth development agencies, education associations, education policy makers, health, community development organizations and more. The mission of the Coalition is to mobilize the resources and capacity of multiple sectors and institutions to create a united movement for community schools. The Coalition's goal is to strengthen schools, families and communities so that they are better prepared to improve student learning.

In recent decades, educators, policymakers and others have come to understand that the real question is not how to provide all children with schooling, but how to create the conditions that enable every child to succeed. The Coalition for Community Schools makes the case that community schools are an important answer.

What is a Community School?
A community school is both a place and a set of partnerships where an integrated focus on academics, services, supports and opportunities leads to improved student learning, stronger families and healthier communities. Using public schools as a hub, community schools knit together inventive, enduring relationships among educators, families, community volunteers, and community partners – businesses, family support groups, health and social service agencies, youth development organizations, community organizations, and other organizations – committed to children. They act in concert to transform traditional schools – permanently – into partnerships for excellence. Because individual schools and the school system join forces with community agencies and organizations to operate community schools, schools are not left to work alone.

Do Community Schools Work?
Absolutely. The Coalition shortly will issue Making the Difference: Research and Practice in Community Schools. A first of its kind report, Making the Difference surveys research from multiple disciplines and summarizes current evaluation evidence to show how community schools are improving outcomes and meeting America's high expectations for students, families and communities. The crux of the evidence is presented through data from evaluations of 20 community school initiatives across the United States which clearly demonstrate that community schools are making notable improvements in student learning, family engagement, school effectiveness, and community vitality.

For further information about the Coalition for Community Schools, and the upcoming release of its publication Making the Difference, visit our website www.communityschools.org, email ccs@iel.org or call 202-822-8405 x156.