California has approved another $45 million for community schools across the state — the latest phase of a $4.1 billion initiative to expand education, health and social services for students and their families.
A decades-old model, community schools offer expanded support for not just students, but families and communities around the campus. That could include before and after school programs, learning opportunities for parents, extended food support, or other initiatives that fit the specific needs of a neighborhood.
“If we don’t have parent and community support, we’re limited in the scope of what we can do to develop a child,” said Elizabeth Veal, superintendent of Bayshore Elementary School District in Daly City. “So, it makes perfect sense; parents are children’s first teachers.”
The new funding will provide $200,000 to 226 school districts, county offices of education, and charter schools, including Bayshore Elementary and several others in the Bay Area. With this third round of grant funding, the state is providing more than $700 million to nearly 460 schools throughout the state, with a focus on high-need communities.
Once all $4.1 billion has been rolled out, California is hoping one in every three schools will become a community school.
“Community schools aim to break down the barriers that limit student and family access to needed services and resources, ensuring that the school site itself can become a place for a variety of services,” said State Superintendent Tony Thurmond in a press release.
The latest round of grants is for planning — the first step of creating integrated education, health and social service programs that stem from the classroom. To date, the state has awarded two planning grants and one implementation grant, the latter of which is the second step in the process. Another round of implementation grants will be awarded in May of 2023.
“It’s through these first couple years of inquiry that you really get to solidify what your community school looks like,” said Veal.
For Bayshore, that means expanding the school’s focus on mental health support, especially as the community continues rebuilding from the pandemic. For Cabrillo Unified School District in Half Moon Bay, that will mean expanding the district’s Community Hub initiative, and bringing partners directly into the classroom to provide services like college and career readiness programs. And for the Antioch Unified School District, that will mean strengthening parent engagement at the school and planning for enhanced before- and after-school programming, among other activities.
“This is a model that’s been happening and heralded for decades,” said Sean McPhetridge, the superintendent of Cabrillo Unified. “We’re a very small community, and there are many families here who are socioeconomically diverse. Because of that, this is a great way for us to focus on equity.”
Though community schools have been a priority for both Gov. Gavin Newsom and Thurmond, the model is not unique to California. For years, studies of community schools across the country report improved student behavior, attendance, engagement and learning. Such programs have also picked up speed in Maryland, New York, Vermont, New Mexico, and Illinois, among other states. And earlier this month, President Biden pushed the country to double its allocation for community schools in his 2024 budget proposal — an ask with a $368 million price tag.
Even so, the $4.1 billion California Community Schools Partnership Program is the largest investment toward the model in the nation. The size of that investment has been historic, said Anna Maier, a senior policy advisor and researcher at the Learning Policy Institute, a nonprofit focused on education research.
“It’s the largest investment in community schooling that we’ve ever seen in the United States,” said Maier. “It does feel, to me, like a moment of hope and excitement.”
