The findings for CommSchs suggest promising indications of increased engagement as reflected in a significantly higher levels of parent connections to school staff and community resources. Attendance is also higher for many students in CommSchs than in non-CommSchs, especially those implementing for five or more years. We continue to find that OST participants attend school more often than similar peers. While we cannot prove causation with this comparative study design, the consistent findings are encouraging, especially for middle school grades where we often see disengagement from school begin.

A rise in the number of school shootings over time has driven increasing attention to school safety. However, school shootings are not the only physical safety threat students may encounter at school. Other types of violence include sexual assault, robbery, physical attack or fights, and threats of physical attack (with or without a weapon). In addition to immediate physical harms, school violence can have long-lasting effects that undermine students’ engagement and mental health. It can also increase drug use and risk of suicide. Although there is widespread agreement that all children and youth deserve a safe and healthy school environment, there is significant debate about how best to promote student safety. As states, districts, and schools consider policies and practices that will promote school safety, they can look to existing research to understand more about the effectiveness of proposed strategies and the potential risk of unintended consequences. Although this report summarizes what is known about the prevalence and effectiveness of strategies to improve student safety in schools, we acknowledge that schools are not the only place where young people experience violence, and there is much to be done to ensure safety in all homes and social spaces.

This issue of Universities and Community Schools features seven articles written largely by graduate students whose scholarship involves community-engaged research, particularly with local public schools. It includes the perspectives and experiences of students from a range of disciplines, geographies, and institutional types.

This report builds on resources to create a comprehensive overview that maps each program to the Essential Elements for Community School Transformation identified by the Community Schools Forward Task Force in January 2023. Some common themes are that each site has unique needs depending on its location (e.g., urban, rural, or tribal) and stage of development (e.g., planning to implement or ready to expand) and that “a mix of funding is essential.”

Shared Power and Decision-making Laying the Foundation for Transformative Racially Just and Relationship-Centered Community Schools

In the past 2 years, California has made significant investments to support the expansion of community schools statewide, including $4.1 billion to establish the California Community Schools Partnership Grant Program. In addition to leveraging new state funds, sustainably financing a community schools strategy may also involve blending and braiding local, state, and federal funding sources. This brief provides an overview of some state and federal funding sources that may be used to support a community schools approach in California.

Community schools partner with local organizations and family members to integrate a range of supports and opportunities for students, families, and the community in order to promote students’ physical, social, emotional, and academic well-being. Community schools typically incorporate four key pillars: (1) integrated systems of support, such as mental and physical health care and other wraparound services; (2) enriched and expanded learning time and opportunities, including lengthening the school day and year as well as enriching the curriculum through student-centered learning; (3) active family and community engagement that includes service provision and meaningful partnerships with family members; and (4) collaborative leadership practices that coordinate school services and include various school actors in decision-making.

The community schools strategy transforms a school into a place where educators, local community members, families, and students work together to strengthen conditions for student learning and healthy development. As partners, they organize in- and out-of-school resources, supports, and opportunities so that young people thrive. A growing number of states are investing in community schools as a strategy to address long-standing social inequities that have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Based on a review of state American Rescue Plan Act plans, as well as state legislative and state education agency websites and other online resources, this report describes community school initiatives in eight states. The report highlights three potential approaches to state support for community schools: (1) ongoing support through school funding formulas, (2) competitive grant funding, and (3) capacity-building supports (such as certification processes).

The California Community Schools Partnership Program (CCSPP) supports schools’ efforts to partner with community agencies and local government to align community resources to improve student outcomes. These partnerships provide an integrated focus on academics, health and social services, youth and community development, and community engagement.

ACT Now convenes the only statewide professional development specifically for community school practitioners. Since 2018, the coalition has grown this statewide network to improve access to resources, provide advocacy support, and work towards the goal of every school in Illinois as a community school.