We know that research supports the effectiveness of Community Schools, which aim to improve student achievement through strong partnerships between principals, parents, teachers and community-based organizations (CBOs). Yet in our experience, the path to implementing the Community Schools model is not always clear. While the New York City Office of Community Schools currently provides some overarching guidance on how a Community School should be structured, it falls short of providing an actionable, data-driven plan for the complex challenge of building and maintaining these components within a school.
In the absence of strong guidance, the working relationships between schools, their partner organizations, and families vary greatly across the city in design, community involvement, leadership style, expectations, accountability measures and staff professional development. As a result, Community School students in New York City receive inconsistent services from their (CBOs).
Recommendations:
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Deepen the CBO-school collaboration with co-implementation of the school’s vision and joint professional development.
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Identify, target and track progress toward meeting student and community needs through needs assessments, growth goals and action plans.
- Create a clear point of contact at The Office of Community Schools to share tools and resources and ensure customized support for each school.
About the Teacher Action Team
We are a diverse team of 12 teachers who met for several weeks to review research on Community Schools and examine the status quo in New York City Office of Community Schools.