Communities in Schools reports case management for 463 students, tiered supports and basic-needs work

Representatives from Communities in Schools of the Tri Cities updated the Petersburg school board Aug. 6 on the nonprofit’s work in the district, reporting continued partnerships, case management and basic‑needs supports. Why it matters: Communities in Schools (CIS) provides school‑based coordinators, connects families to community resources and aims to improve attendance, behavior, coursework and parent engagement — services that support students’ ability to learn. Jamal Ellison, director of program operations, said CIS now serves all nine PCPS schools and case-managed 463 students last year, with a service reach of 3,671 students division-wide. Ellison said CIS provided 4,155 hours of tier‑3 individual supports (social-emotional check-ins, referrals to outside providers) and participated in attendance and student‑empowerment teams. CIS also distributed 600 Thanksgiving meals through a partnership with CHASM and arranged monthly food distributions with FeedMore and local churches; Dignity Grows provided menstrual-hygiene products at Petersburg High. Ellison highlighted CIS goals for 2025–26 — including raising promotion and graduation rates among case‑managed students — and noted partnerships such as the “Girls with Pearls” mentoring program and a medical classroom at Vernon Johns that will expose middle-schoolers to health-care careers. Board members and community representatives suggested a publicly accessible calendar of mentorship and partner activities so families can browse programs. Ellison welcomed that suggestion and encouraged organizations working in schools to register with CIS so coordination improves. No action was required; CIS’ site coordinators will continue work with principals and district teams.