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Sweetwater wins community schools implementation grants for 12 sites; district outlines five-year plan
Summary
District staff reported that 12 Sweetwater schools — eight high schools and four middle schools — were awarded state community schools implementation grants. Staff said the grants cover roughly $22 million over five years for site planning and integrated supports, and outlined hiring and sustainability steps.
Sweetwater Union High School District staff on July 21 told trustees the district received community schools implementation grants for 12 qualifying sites — eight high schools and four middle schools — and said the five-year implementation award will total close to $22 million for the district’s participating schools.
"Community schools can transform lives," said Neshelly Veronica Mata, the district’s program manager for community schools, summarizing the planning work and community engagement that preceded the awards. District staff told the board they had conducted surveys and engagement sessions involving more than 16,235 participants across students, families, staff and community partners during a two‑year planning phase.
Staff said California allocated $4 billion statewide for community schools across grant cohorts and that the current awards included 12 Sweetwater sites in the state's final cohort of funded community schools. District presenters said award amounts vary by school enrollment; the five‑year implementation grants will be distributed to sites year‑to‑year based on enrollment and identified needs, with per‑site allocations reported in the range of several hundred thousand dollars per year for larger schools.
District staff outlined implementation steps for the coming year: establishing site steering committees, hiring a community schools coordinator at each site and a district-level classified relations facilitator (a CSEA position the board approved at an earlier meeting), conducting refined needs assessments, and filing annual narrative and budget progress reports with the state. Staff said a budget report for the planning grant cycle will be due September 30 and that sustainability planning will begin now so sites can maintain services after the five-year grant ends.
Board members asked about selection criteria and sustainability. Staff said sites were eligible based on state criteria (schools with 80% or more students identified as high-need) and that the district plans to braid existing funding — including LCAP and Title I supplements — and pursue partnerships to support work after the grant period.
No formal action was required for the report; board members thanked staff and community partners and asked for regular progress updates.
