Communities in Schools of Cleveland County

High School ProgramsThrough a variety of delivery options and programming, CIS Graduation Coaches provide the necessary coaching, resources, and support to high school students their parents/guardians so that they persist to graduation and are more knowledgeable and better equipped to chart a course for postsecondary education, vocational training, and/or a military or other career. Services provide students,and their parents/guardians when applicable, a one-on-one relationship with a caring adult, a safe place to learn and grow, and exposure to certain supports based on an individualized student-support plan that focuses on areas such as behavior, attendance, and coursework through a variety of strategies related to communication, time management, study skills, college tours, financial aid and scholarship information, SAT/ACT preparation, the college application process, job shadowing and internship opportunities, career fairs, community service/service learning opportunities, and other topics aligned with improving academic performance. Graduation Coaches are based at the four traditional area high schools and work as partners with school administration, guidance counselors, school social workers,and family members to develop a caseload of at-risk students who would most benefit from their services. Graduation Coaches also provide resources to pregnant or parenting teens through referrals,home visits, advocacy, and group meetings. Services are offered during the regular school day in both one-on-one and group settings. The schools also benefit from CIS of Cleveland County events,whole-schoolactivities and services, and community resources.

Community Programs through Juvenile Crime Prevention Council cover three areas:MentoringThe Mentoring Program provides a one-on-one relationship with a caring adult for at-risk youth, with special emphasis on youth who are potenially court-or gang-involved. referrals are accepted from CIS programs and other community agencies, including those who partner with the Cleveland County Juvenile Crime Prevention Council. Priority is given to referrals from juvenile court counselors and law enforcement. Youth eligible for the Mentoring Program are ages 6-17 and enrolled in or suspended from Cleveland County Schools. The goal of the program is to positively impact the graduation rate and the risk factors for dropping out, including involvement with the juvenile justice system and other negative behaviors.Teen CourtThis diversion program provides an opportunity for qualifying juvenile offenders to avoid a charge upon successful program completion. Offenders admit to the offense and appear before a trained court of their peers. The court determines an appropriate, constructive sentence, which includes community service participation serving as a member of the Teen Court jury, as well as other consequences that are deemed appropriate by the Teen Court. The goal of the program is for youth offenders to be accountable for their behavior, realize the harm done by and make amends for their actions, and have no further involvement with the juvenile court system.Community Service and RestitutionThis program place youth on community service sites as part of their Teen Court or juvenile court sentence. If restitution is ordered/needed, payment is made to the victim following completion of the assigned community service. This program is designed to create an opportunity for youth offenders to be held accountable for their behavior by having them volunteer to provide financial and physicalrestitution to their victims while also recognizing the importance of giving back.Program AccomplishmentsAccording to the Organization's records, the following program outcomes were achieved at its six sitesduring the 2021-2022 academic year. Provided targeted/intensive support services to 170 students through Intermediate and Middle School Programs, and 256 students through High School Programs Provided other services/supports to 4,560 non-case-managed students and 1,221 parents. This encompassed over 389 hours of supports related to topics such as attendance outreach and incentives; academic assistance; gang-violence prevention; bullying; PowerSchool technology training for parents; use of Google Classroom, Class Dojo, and Remind accounts with parents and students; parent family resources/referrals; college and career readiness; financial literacy; life skills; service-learning; motivational speaking; cultural enrichment; and social-emotional learning. Served 21 Mentoring participants, 16 Community Service and Restitution participants, and five Teen Court participants Engaged 79 volunteers for a total of 1,786 hours Provided Christmas assistance to 18 students in five families Furnished school supplies to district staff as needed Made the following impact: 88% of students served were promoted, 98% of seniors served graduated, 70% of students served made progress toward behavior-related goals, 54% of students served made progress toward attendance-related goals, 79% of students served made progress toward coursework-related goals, 90% made progress toward social emotional learning-related goals, and 100% made progress toward college and career readiness-related goals

Intermediate and Middle School ProgramsStudent Support Coaches at Burns Middle School and Shelby Intermediate School provide supports that include in-school services in a variety of formats and after-school academic and enrichment programming. Programming provides students, and their parents/guardians when applicable, a one-on-one relationship with a caring adult, a safe place to learn and grow, and exposure to certain strategies based on an individualized student-support plan that focuses on goals related to behavior, attendance,and coursework. Services are based on identified needs and established goals and may include academic support, academic enrichment, service learning, character education, leadership, financial literacy, and parent engagement activities, among others. Student Support Coaches work as partners with school administration, guidance counselors, school social workers, and family members todevelop a caseload of at-risk students who would most benefit from their services. The schools also benefit from CIS of Cleveland County events, whole-school activities and services, and community resources.