I spent three days in New York City last week with 16 others from Seattle taking a look at how they run so-called "community schools," public school buildings that offer a broad range of services, including dental clinics, daycare, English language courses for parents, parenting skills training, summer camps, and more.
Our group visited one elementary school where summer camp kids were playing a game of "guess what's in the can" in Spanish and English. That's Patrick D'Amelio, CEO of the Alliance for Education, sitting on the right with the blue shirt, and Susan Enfield, Chief Academic Officer for Seattle Public Schools on the left in the black jacket. Our study team also included representatives from the Seattle Education Association, the Gates Foundation, school board president Michael DeBell, and City staff.
We spent much of our time with leaders of The Children's Aid Society, a nonprofit organization running 20 community schools in New York City. I liked their slogan describing community schools: A Strategy, Not a Program. Their strategy is all about preparing children to graduate, helping parents navigate through raising kids, building strong families and healthier communities. The Coalition for Community Schools defines a community school as "both a place and a set of partnerships between the school and other community resources."