Community schools: partnerships for excellence.

COMMUNITY SCHOOLS: Partnerships for Excellence. Washington, DC: Coalition for Community Schools, Institute for Educational Leadership (n.d.). A community school is a public school committed to providing a broader range of services for children and their families than that found in a typical public school. The mission of these schools is to involve educators, families, community volunteers, businesses, health and social service agencies, and youth development organizations in providing one place that integrates services for children and families. This publication, sponsored by the 142 local, state, and national organizations that form the Coalition for Community Schools, includes profiles of community schools throughout the United States. The authors address what happens in a community school and report on research that reveals the gains for student learning and healthy families. For instance, the Bush Center for Child Development at Yale University reported that parents involved in one community school improved their parenting practices, were less stressed, spent less money on child care, and missed fewer days of work than those from a non-community school. This is a good resource for those interested in learning more about community schools.

To order free copies of this report, contact: Martin J. Blank, Staff Director, Coalition for Community Schools, c/o Institute for Educational Leadership, 1001 Connecticut Ave. NW, Suite 310, Washington, DC 20036; 202-822-8405, ext. 45; www.communityschools.org.