Our mission is to surround students with a community of support, empowering them to stay in school and achieve in life.
BEING PRESENT MATTERS IN CHICAGO
As the challenges facing our students have increased, so has the need for Communities In Schools (CIS) of Chicago.
Because of CIS, students are more likely to come to school, stay in school, do better academically, and ultimately, graduate, prepared for continued success.
Testimony from principals, teachers, community organizations, and students continues to verify that the work we do matters.
Impact In Our Community
Chicago public-school students benefited from programs and services provided by or connected through CIS of Chicago.*
students in grades K-12 were served by CIS Student Supports Managers. They created plans to develop the skills and access the resources they need to succeed in school.*
schools were served by CIS of Chicago. Our team connected schools with community programs that addressed their unique needs.*
*Data from the 2024-25 school year
PROVIDING HOLISTIC SUPPORT
Chicago students and their families have endured unprecedented challenges since the start of the decade. Systemic challenges like poverty, community violence, and lack of investment have compounded since the pandemic with an increase in youth mental health issues, as well as significant learning loss.
Our team works to ensure that every student, regardless of their identity, ability, or zip code, has access to the resources and opportunity they need to be successful in the classroom and beyond.
This year, CIS has received more requests from schools for basic needs items -- essentials like hygiene supplies, winter coats, and backpacks that students need as a foundation to their success.
In response, our team is working directly with our Fundamental Needs Partnership Specialist, Jacque, to meet this growing need and connect students with our network of community organizations.
At one of our Southwest Side schools, Jacque worked with our Student Supports Manager, Ms. Herrera, to connect students with new shoes through Soles4Souls! ... See MoreSee Less
Photos from Grimes Elementary School's post ... See MoreSee Less
Thanks to The Pritzker Organization for hosting CIS students yesterday for an Inspiring Futures field trip!
Young people had the chance to learn more about careers there, meet with professionals, and discuss the goals they want to achieve before the end of the school year, as well as their dreams for the future. ... See MoreSee Less
Our Chief Partnership Engagement Officer Robin Koelsch is busy visiting Chicago schools this month, facilitating workshops on Do the Write Thing!
During these workshops, Robin engages with middle-schoolers and shares the power of youth voice through Do the Write Thing, a writing program where young people respond to the call to end youth violence.
๐ฆ๐ง๐จ๐๐๐ก๐ง๐ฆ! Written submissions are due on January 30.
๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ข! Do the Write Thing is always looking for readers.
More info here: www.cisofchicago.org/do-the-write-thing/ ... See MoreSee Less
Returning to school after winter break can be a challenge for many students. They often need time to remember the academic and behavioral expectations at school and adjust back to their routine.
Our team at CIS provided support -- before, during, and after winter break -- to help teachers mitigate the "winter slide" and ensure that students had the holistic support they needed to return to school, focused and engaged.
Check out our most recent blog post on the issue! Link here: ... See MoreSee Less
Beyond Academics: How CIS of Chicago Supported Schools, Students, and Families During the "Winter Slide" - Communities In Schools of Chicago
www.cisofchicago.org
To help students maintain a routine over winter break, CIS of Chicago supported schools, students, and families with a multi-faceted approach on avoiding the "winter slide."๐ข๐๐ฟ ๐ป๐ฒ๐๐๐ผ๐ฟ๐ธ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐ฐ๐ผ๐บ๐บ๐๐ป๐ถ๐๐ ๐ฝ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐๐ป๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ ๐ฐ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐ผ๐ฝ๐ฝ๐ผ๐ฟ๐๐๐ป๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ฒ๐ ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ป๐ผ๐ ๐ผ๐ป๐น๐ ๐ฒ๐ป๐ด๐ฎ๐ด๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ฒ๐ฑ๐๐ฐ๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐ฎ๐น. ๐ง๐ต๐ฒ๐ ๐ฐ๐ผ๐บ๐ฝ๐น๐ฒ๐บ๐ฒ๐ป๐ ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐๐๐๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ป๐๐ ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐น๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ป๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ถ๐ป ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐น๐ฎ๐๐๐ฟ๐ผ๐ผ๐บ.
Last fall, CIS partner the American Writers Museum hosted an Author Talk for CIS schools featuring author Elizabeth Brown. Brown's children's book, ๐๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐๐ฐ๐ณ๐ญ๐ฅ ๐๐ฏ๐ต๐ช๐ณ๐ฆ, tells the true story of a Portuguese diplomat who saved thousands of refugees from the Nazis during World War II.
One CIS school, South Shore Elementary, brought 40 third and fourth graders to the event, which included a reading, an author Q&A, and time for students to write their owns poems. Students also left with their very own copies of Brown's book! ... See MoreSee Less
As schools close for winter break, it's important that our young people continue to maintain some structure and sense of routine so they return to the classroom focused and ready in January.
Our Chief Operating Officer and Clinical Director, Dr. Judith Allen, joined Lisa Dent on WGN-AM to discuss strategies for preventing the 'winter slide' and share how CIS is supporting teachers and parents with resources to navigate the holiday break and maintain that structure.
Listen to the full interview here: ... See MoreSee Less
How to keep kids engaged during winter break
wgnradio.com
Judith Allen, Chief operating officer of CIS of Chicago, joins Lisa Dent to discuss strategies that help prevent the โwinter slide.โ The winter slide, Allen explains, is when schools kiโฆThe programs that CIS connects not only help students explore their interests; they also help develop their skillset - and think critically about their future goals.
One program we connected to an elementary school on the West Side this year was through the Chicago Blues Revival! This was the organization's second year with the school, and students learned the history of Blues, how to play the harmonica, and explored song writing. ๐ค๐ผ
Check out the video of their end-of-year student showcase: ... See MoreSee Less
This fall, our Partnership Team held meetups on the Southwest and West Sides for CIS school partners!
During the meetups, schools heard directly from CIS community partners, learned more about programs available to them, and discussed ways to leverage their partnership with CIS.
Special thanks to Plant Chicago and ComEd for hosting these meetups and providing tours of their facilities. The tours were a unique highlight. ... See MoreSee Less
Snapshots from the end of the semester!
Here is one of our CIS students with her science fair project. ๐ฅ๏ธ Photo captured by Ms. Awalt, our Student Supports Manager embedded there. ๐ท ... See MoreSee Less
Connecting students with items like hygiene supplies, backpacks, and winter clothes are one of the top priorities for CIS schools. And with support from our network of community partners, CIS is able to help schools meet their priorities and better serve students and families.
This winter, CIS connected 59 schools with 1,529 winter coats from our partner Cradles to Crayons Chicago! Schools were very appreciative to receive the coats -- and in a wide range of sizes. ... See MoreSee Less
๐ง๐ต๐ฒ ๐ต๐ผ๐น๐ถ๐ฑ๐ฎ๐ ๐๐ฝ๐ถ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ ๐ถ๐ ๐ถ๐ป ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐ถ๐ฟ!
Last week, the CIS team came together to celebrate the season, share treats, and enjoy each other's company. And at one of our schools on the West Side, Student Supports Manager Arnetra created a Sip & Study station for students to come after school, take some time to work on their assignments, and grab hot cocoa. ... See MoreSee Less