Communities In Schools presents year‑end data; district program credited with schoolwide supports

Communities In Schools (CIS) representatives updated the Susquehanna Township School District board on program operations and outcomes for the last school year.

"Our mission at Communities in Schools is to surround students with a community of support, empowering them to stay in school and achieve in life," speaker Angie D. Santiago said. CIS described a three‑tier model used in district buildings: whole‑school supports, group interventions (tier 2) and targeted case management (tier 3).

CIS reported high‑level outcomes for the district: roughly 161,501 instances of whole‑school service contacts, 558 parents served through tier‑1 activities, and 86 students who received case management last year. Among case‑managed students the presenter reported improvement rates of roughly 60–61 percent for attendance, behavior and academic measures.

The CIS representative listed programs and partnerships including Art Nook after‑school arts programming, family fitness nights, a high‑school 'girl talk' empowerment group that secured speakers from elected officials, and the Hannah Bus Safety Program at Thomas Holtzman Elementary. CIS staff also coordinate mentorship and executive‑functioning groups at the middle school.

Board members asked how CIS would respond to a parent who raised bullying concerns during the public comment period. CIS said staff can provide both tier‑1 schoolwide events for Bullying Prevention Month and one‑to‑one case management or lunch‑group interventions to connect students to peers and staff.

CIS staff asked the board for continued partnership and described ongoing efforts to expand in‑school mentorship and connect students to external programs such as Big Brothers Big Sisters and Girl Scouts.