CIS-HENRY NEWS S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 3 V O L U M E 2 , I S S U E 1

W H A T ’ S I N S I D E :

What is CIS?

Successful Parent EXPO

Stay involved in your

child’s education

CIS Henry sponsored

students for FSC Summer

Camp

Youth success stories

Become a mentor

And so much more!

www.CIS-Henry.org

678) 432 4499

70 Macon Street

McDonough, GA

Connect with

W H E R E T O F I N D I T

Community Partners 2

Parent EXPO 3

Preventing Summer

Slide 5

Recent

Accomplishments 6

Volunteer 8

© 2013 Communities In Schools - Henry | 70 Macon Street | McDonough, GA 30253

CIS began in Henry County in

January 2012, and by August of

that year, the CIS-Model had

been implemented in all eleven

middle schools in Henry County.

Beginning this school year, three

of the middle schools have been

upgraded to comprehensive

sites, in which ten percent of the

school’s population are sched-

uled to receive Level 2 services.

The three comprehensive sites

in Henry County are:

1) Henry County Middle

School

2) Locust Grove Middle

School

3) Stockbridge Middle School

Graduation Coaches have been

reassigned to share responsibili-

ties as CIS Site Coordinators. The

site coordinator’s job is to identi-

fy students who are at risk of

not graduating. He or she as-

sesses school and student needs

and establishes relationships

with local businesses, social

service agencies, health care

providers, and parent and volun-

teer organizations to harness

needed resources. Whether it’s

tutoring, eyeglasses or just a

safe place to be after school,

when these needs are met,

students can concentrate on

learning.

CIS of Henry County Implementation

setting, which helps students feel more

comfortable than they would in a regular

school. The environment is professional and

the learning is self-directed, which moti-

vates the students to work hard for their

future. The cost-per-student in a PLC is

close to that of the cost of a student in a

traditional high school.

The many effects of CIS have been re-

searched and shown to be successful in

their implementation. An outside evaluation

has shown that CIS is one of only a few

organizations that has proven to keep stu-

dents in school. Of those, CIS is the only one

that has documented its successful dropout

prevention rates.

Communities in Schools is the nation’s

largest dropout prevention organiza-

tion and serves over one million stu-

dents in the U.S.A., building relation-

ships with children and helping them

to succeed in school and in life. We do

this by following our belief that every

child has five basic needs that we can

help them meet.

A personal, one-on-one relation-

ship with a caring adult.

A safe place to learn and grow.

A healthy start and a healthy

future.

A marketable skill to use upon

graduation.

A chance to give back to peers

and community.

CIS offers both Level 1 Services, which

are resources that are available to all

students, and Level 2 Services, which

are resources that are targeted to

students who have specific needs. CIS

learns about these needs from gradua-

tion coaches/site coordinators, who

are placed in the schools to fulfill the

five basic needs of the students.

Level 1 Services can include providing

school supplies, events, field trips,

health screenings, and much more.

Level 2 Services include tutoring, men-

toring, individual counseling, and after-

school programs, just to list a few.

Throughout CIS, there are over 30

Performance Learning Centers (PLCs),

which are high schools for students

who struggle in a traditional school

setting. They provide a small academic

Who We Are

The CIS graphic illustrates the process followed and the

services offered by Communities in Schools.

Communities In Schools

Programs don’t change kids, relation-

ships do. —Bill Milliken, CIS co-founder

Communities In Schools surrounds students with a community of support,

empowering them to stay in school and achieve in life.

© 2013 Communities In Schools - Henry | 70 Macon Street| McDonough, GA 30253

V O L U M E 2 , I S S U E 1 P A G E 2

Community Partnerships Over the last year Communities In Schools of Henry County has managed to develop written agreements with local businesses and organizations . Our model requires us to partner with existing community resources and align them directly with CIS Graduation Coaches, so that students have direct access to these services.

These local partners are:

Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta—Medical Assistance

Family Support Circle, Inc.—After School Program

Henry Vision Center—Optometrist

Brooke’s Closet—Clothing & Household Items

Georgia Lions Lighthouse Foundation—Eyewear

4ward Momentum—Motivational Speaker

Please contact us if you would like to become a community partner.

4ward Momentum was creat-

ed by Harlon Matthews in

order to encourage people in

all walks of life. He does this

by delivering motivational

speeches. Harlon has over-

come many obstacles, which

helps him to relate to many of

the struggles that he address-

es.

Our partnership with Brooke’s Closet

has been a very active and productive

one so far. Brooke’s Closet distributes

clothes, toiletries, and school supplies

to families who have been displaced by

fire. Brooke’s Closet has partnered

with CIS to provide these same items

to students at the Middle Schools.

The Georgia Lions Lighthouse

Foundation serves Georgians

who are either low-income or

do not have insurance. They

offer services in both hearing

and vision. Their partnership

with CIS includes offering eye-

glasses to students in need at

no cost to the student.

Family Support Circle offers

many services throughout the

community, including their

Youth Excellence Program,

which includes both an after-

school and summer program.

CIS Henry and FSC partnered

up with a mutual goal of help-

ing to create better access of

their after school program to

those students who could

benefit from homework assis-

tance, mentoring, tutoring

and also on improving their

social skills.

That partnership was fur-

thered strengthened with our

participation in their Summer

Youth Excellence Program.

Dr. Nickson Henry founded the Henry Vision

Center in 2009. He has partnered with Com-

munities in Schools to offer eye exams at no

cost to students who may need glasses or

contacts. Often the reason that a child is strug-

gling in school is the result of having poor

vision, which Dr. Henry addresses by his free

eye exams.

Each service listed on this page can be accessed direct-

ly by a Middle School Graduation Coach and arrange-

ments made so that a student and their family receive

those services. Parent Permission Forms are required.

Our newest community partnership is with

Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. Many fam-

ilies struggle with obtaining basic medical

services for their children, so through Grad-

uation Coaches we are hoping to address

the medical needs of children much quicker

and in a more direct way.

P A G E 3

© 2013 Communities In Schools - Henry | 70 Macon Street | McDonough, GA 30253

V O L U M E 2 , I S S U E 1

Great turnout! Thank you to everyone who attended!

2nd Annual Parent EXPO a Success

The three main goals of the event:

1) Community outreach—2,000 bags

of basic school supplies were

handed out to families.

2) Increasing parental engagement—

parents were able to connect

directly with principals & teachers

and to learn about different ways

to stay engaged with their child’s

education.

3) Promoting community partner-

ships—businesses and non-profits

connected with residents and each

other.

For its second annual Parent

EXPO, CIS Henry partnered with

Henry County Schools, Connect-

ing Henry, Inc., Commissioner

Bruce Holmes Youth Program,

and Children’s Healthcare of

Atlanta, contributing to another

successful event.

Held Saturday, July 27th at the

Jason T. Harper Event Center,

the EXPO invited parents to pick

up free school supplies after

visiting School Clusters and

several other community re-

sources.

These community resources

included local non-profits, as

well as faith-based organiza-

tions, businesses, and social

services.

Children enjoyed demonstra-

tions by a local Robotics Team,

climbed on inflatables and even

enjoyed free hotdogs , drinks

and snacks offered by vendors.

Last year’s event was held at

Atlanta Motor Speedway where

we were able to give away 3,000

backpacks to Henry County

students.

Thank you to our partners: Henry County Schools, Connecting Henry, Inc., Commissioner Bruce Holmes Youth Program, and Children’s Healthcare

of Atlanta and to all of our sponsors for coming out to the EXPO and for helping us make this year’s Parent EXPO an enormously successful one!

Academy for Advanced Studies

Amerigroup

Barnesville Housing Authority

Belk, Inc.

Bridgeway Youth Program Specialists

da Famous Boyzz

Department of Human Services

Division of Family & Children Services

Eagles Landing Business, Dev, and Training

Family Support Circle, Inc.

Flint River Council Boy Scouts

Fraternal Order of Police

Georgia Lions Lighthouse Foundation

Georgia Power

Girl Scouts

Great Expectations

Haven House

Henry County Democratic Party

Henry County Fire Department

Henry County Fuller Center for Housing

Henry County Library System

Henry County NAACP

Henry County Parks and Recreation

Henry County Sheriff’s Department

Henry County Tax Commissioner

Henry County Water Authority

Highway to Heaven Ministry

Honey Creek Youth Ranch

HOPE Family Ministries

Impact Academy

Kids Bouncy Things

Kidz First Counseling

LifeSouth

Little Caesar’s

McDonough Lions Club

McIntosh Trail Community Service Board

Parent Resource Center

Pregnancy Resource Center

Prevent Child Abuse Henry County

Phillips-Van Heusen

Progressive Citizens of Stockbridge

Radiant Church

Right from the Start Medicaid

RoBUGS Robotics Team

Southern Crescent Sexual Assault Center

Spivey Hall at Clayton State University

State Rep. Sandra G. Scott

Tabernacle of Praise

Tiffany Flores - American Family Insurance

TooLoo Peas

Toppan InterAmerica

Two Guys and a Microphone

Yule Forest

“I wish to thank you & your

team for a wonderful, much

needed Back to School

event. It was the first time I

attended; so enjoyable, easy

to navigate, willing workers,

pleasant people!.... wonder-

ful event, excellent 'bridging'

& meeting the needs in our

community!” —M. Williams,

Henry County Resident

On

e s

tud

en

t d

rop

s o

ut

of

sch

oo

l eve

ry 2

6 s

eco

nd

s.

P A G E 4

© 2013 Communities In Schools - Henry | 70 Macon Street | McDonough, GA 30253

V O L U M E 1 , I S S U E 2

Online Parent Resource Center

It’s back to school time again, and we hope your school year is

off to a great start! If you are a parent or guardian, you know

that it can be difficult for your child to adjust to the new grade

that he or she is entering. It can also be difficult for parents/

guardians to know how to cope with certain issues that come

up during your child’s school year. It is important for you to

stay involved in your child’s education, as it has been proven

that children whose parents/guardians are active in their edu-

cation score better grades in school and have fewer behavior-

al problems. Also, when a child’s parent/guardian is involved,

the child is much more likely to graduate.

That is why Communities in Schools has the Parent Resource Center available online to anyone who needs assistance

navigating through the difficulties of the school year. On the Parent Resource Center, you will find many tools used to

assist you in helping your child succeed, including information on how to stay involved for the busy parent who is

short on time. You will also find information on how to help your child with homework and test preparation and how

to handle it if your child is being bullied.

If you are a teacher, the Parent

Resource Center has sources

for you, too. In addition to hav-

ing access to the same re-

sources that the parents have,

you can also use many ideas for

events and activities for your

students. We hope the Parent

Resource Center will help stu-

dents, parents, and teachers to

have a successful school year!

One of the many resources

offered at the online Parent

Resource Center is a guide to

families on middle school tran-

sition. In it, you will find much

useful advice on how to help

your child transition from ele-

mentary school to middle

school in all areas, including

academic, social, and environ-

mental changes that will take

place in making the change.

Eve

ry d

ay le

ads

to g

rad

uat

ion

day

.E

very

day

lead

s to

gra

du

atio

n d

ay.

P A G E 5

© 2013 Communities In Schools - Henry | 70 Macon Street | McDonough, GA 30253

V O L U M E 1 , I S S U E 2

What we did this summer

This past summer, CIS Henry partici-

pated in the Family Support Circle

Youth Excellence Program Summer

Camp at Luella Middle School .

A total of 38 Elementary and Middle

School students attended the pro-

gram, 12 of whom were sponsored

through CIS Henry. The children

attended the camp for six weeks

during the summer and participated

in many exciting activities. They

played games, made crafts, got to

spend time using a computer, and so

much more.

They were provided with breakfast,

lunch and a snack each day. Every

week, the group was able to go on

an exciting field trip to learn about

new places in and around Henry

County.

Their first field trip was to LA Fitness,

where the children toured the facili-

ties and learned many benefits of

staying in shape. They continued to

stay in shape throughout the sum-

mer camp by having a boot camp

instructor guide them each week in

an exercise routine.

Their next field trip was to the movie

theater to see the animated movie

Rio. After seeing it, they enjoyed a

picnic at Gardner Park and got to

spend time playing on the play-

ground there.

The following week they visited the

Center of Disease Control Museum,

which provided entertaining health

information and interactive activities

as well as a history of the CDC.

Next, they went to Truett’s Grill Chic-Fil

-A, where they got to learn the history

of the restaurant and received a tour of

the kitchen where they saw how the

meals are prepared.

The six week summer camp ended with

a variety show in which all students

demonstrated their skills and talents

acquired in the program. Many parents

attended this show, which included a

dance routine performed by many of

the children. It was clear to all that they

all had a wonderful experience

throughout the summer by attending

the Family Support Circle Youth Excel-

lence Program Summer Camp!.

Read about the positive experience of

one of the students on page 7.

For more information about Family

Support Circle, Inc. visit

www.familysupportcircle.org.

It c

ost

s so

cie

ty $

250

,00

0 p

er

dro

po

ut.

© 2013 Communities In Schools - Henry | 70 Macon Street | McDonough, GA 30253

V O L U M E 1 , I S S U E 2

Milestones

P A G E 6

Dine Out For Kids

Dine Out For Kids is an annual event that

provides an opportunity for restaurateurs

and sponsors to support at-risk students in

their community by donating a portion of

the profits from breakfast, lunch and/or

dinner to CIS. This year’s Dine Out For Kids

was held on Thursday, August 15, 2013.

Proceeds from the event will allow CIS to

continue to provide after-school, youth

leadership, literacy, parent education and

other pertinent programs in communities

served.

Thank you to Steers for your support in our

mission of empowering students to stay in

school and achieve in life!

Build A Backpack School Supply Drive is an

annual campaign in partnership with Wal-

Mart . Between July 15 and August 18, Wal-

Mart shoppers were invited to donate new

school supplies to students in need by drop-

ping off the supplies in a barrel at each

participating store.

We’d like to say Thank You to the Locust

Grove, McDonough and N. Henry Blvd. Wal-

Mart locations for participating this year!

Build A Backpack

School Supply Drive

We are please to announce the addition of

5 outstanding people to our CIS Henry

Board of Directors. Careshia Moore, Girls of

Ithaca; Chef Sam Pagan, owner of Seasons

Bistro; Timothy McBride, pastor at Taber-

nacle of Praise; Laura Turner, Children’s

Healthcare of Atlanta; and Deana Roberts,

retired educator.

Welcome to the CIS Henry family!

New Board Members

Mayor’s Day of Recognition

On April 9, 2013, the first-ever Mayors Day

of Recognition for National Service united

mayors across the country to spotlight the

impact of national service and honor those

who serve.

Mayor Copeland honored Emily Bigby for

her service as a member of AmeriCorps

VISTA and her commitment to Communities

in Schools of Henry County by presenting

her with a proclamation in recognition of

her efforts in the community.

Congratulations Emily, and thank you for

your service!

Executive Director receives

Spirit of Community Award

The Edward S. Bridges Community Spirit

Award is awarded annually by Leadership

Henry to an outstanding Leadership Henry

alumnus who has shown leadership and

commitment to improve the spirit of Henry

County. The award began in 1997 as a me-

morial to Ed Bridges, who contributed to

Henry County’s spirit by promoting the arts

with organizations such as the Henry Arts

Alliance.

This year’s recipient of the Ed Bridges Spirit

Award was CIS Henry’s Executive Director,

Shane Persaud. In addition to being Execu-

tive Director of CIS Henry , Shane also

founded the Henry County Fuller Center for

Housing, which assists families in need with

the gift of home repairs. Shane has also

served as the program coordinator for

Connecting Henry’s Youth Development

Program, which helps youth with employ-

ment. He also helped develop a Youth

Program Work Model, which supports CIS’s

mission of dropout prevention. Additional-

ly, Shane is involved with many organiza-

tions throughout Henry County, including

the Kiwanis Club, the Henry County Cham-

ber of Commerce , Education & Economics

Initiative, Brainstorm Henry and the Henry

County Networking Group.

Congratulations , Shane!

Golf Classic Fundraiser

On May 20, 2013, Southern Journal Maga-

zine, SCB TV Channel 15 and Renfroe Out-

door Advertising hosted the Inaugural

Southern Crescent Media Golf Classic to

benefit Communities in School of Henry

County.

Thank you to the Presenting Sponsor - Fami-

ly Medical Clinic of McDonough, Signature

Sponsors - Piedmont Henry Hospital &

Servpro of Henry & Spalding Counties, and

Premier Food Sponsor - Shane's Rib Shack .

Thank you to all of our Hole Sponsors, do-

nors, players and volunteers who made this

event a huge success. A special Thank You

to the Southern Crescent Media Group!

“[Shane’s] spirit of commitment and

contribution of his talents to our commu-

nity demonstrate the reason he was

chosen to receive this year’s award.”

P A G E 7 V O L U M E 2 , I S S U E 1

Many children, especially struggling

readers, forget some of what they've

learned or slip out of practice during the

summer months. This is commonly re-

ferred to as “summer slide” and studies

have shown that is can be more preva-

lent with low income families who may

not have access to the right resources.

An existing partnership with Family

Support Circle, Inc. allowed CIS Henry to

reach out into the Hampton area in

search of some families that we could

help. By meeting with City of Hampton’s

Mayor Chris Moore and a few Church

Leaders we were able to sponsor a total

of 12 students in the Family Support

Circle Youth Excellence Program Sum-

mer Camp. Mayor Moore, Arley & Jan

Lowe (Owners of Fermentations), and a

3rd local resident each sponsored

one child into the program . CIS

Henry sponsored 9, bringing the

total enrollment of the summer

program to 38, making it the highest

enrollment so far for FSC.

Michal , a 7th grade student at Hamp-

ton Middle School reported that she

“loved the program and was

“excited to go every day”. Her

mother Mary , says that Michal is now

“more confident...outgoing…[and]

mature”.

In addition to the social skills she

gained and the friends she made, the

program also helped her academical-

ly, as her math skills have improved

due to the instructive part of the

program.

CIS Graduation Coaches at the 11

Middle Schools are directly responsi-

ble to the School Principal and the

CIS Executive Director. Each Gradua-

tion Coach is responsible for coordi-

nating , facilitating and for the deliv-

ery of community resources to at-risk

students to help them stay in school

and graduate. Those wrap around

services can be either academic or

non-academic, or a combination of

both.

Ms. Apryl Mullvain, the CIS Gradua-

tion Coach at Locust Grove Middle

School, reported that she had a very

successful 2012-2013 school year.

Over the 2012-13 school year she met

with a small group of students every

Monday during their lunch break as

part of the Wildcat Lunch Club that

she created as a way to focus on

helping students build on their social

© 2013 Communities In Schools - Henry | 70 Macon Street| McDonough, GA 30253

skills. These lunch-time activities

always started with a discussion

about each student’s “high point”

and “low point” of their previous

week.

Apryl also helped students who were

at risk for failing by organizing an

incentive program in which students

who brought a failing grade up to a

passing grade would receive awards

and incentives such as a $5 Walmart

gift card. However, if a student

brought one grade up to passing

while another dropped to failing, he

or she would not receive the card.

Also, a student could not receive

more than one card for any given

class.

At the end of the school year, Apryl

organized a CIS sponsored Incentive

Field Trip for the struggling students

who were able to maintain a passing

Preventing “summer slide”

CIS Henry Success Stories

Michal (center) rehearses for the Beat

Making Club’s performance in the varie-

ty show.

CIS Graduation Coach Corner grade in all of their classes. She took

ten students to Atlanta to complete

the Atlanta Urban Adventure Quest,

which is a scavenger hunt that allows

the participants to explore the city of

Atlanta. On the scavenger hunt, they

visited Centennial Olympic Park, the

Georgia Aquarium courtyard, the

World of Coke, the CNN Center, and

Oakland Cemetery. This was the first

time many of these students had

visited Atlanta, and they all enjoyed

the experience of visiting the city and

of making new friends and great

memories!

Overall, she had “a fun and educational

summer.” The program gave her “an

opportunity...to grow as a person.” -

Michal’s mother, Mary

P A G E 8

Mentoring Mentoring is a great way to build a relationship with a student who needs a positive adult role model. Mentoring only takes a small amount of time each week but can make a huge positive difference in the life of a child.

In addition to helping the child, mentoring is also beneficial for the mentor. The relationship that a mentor forms with a child will be meaningful for the mentor as well as for the child. Furthermore, men-tors gain skills in their dealings with the child, which will benefit the mentor both professionally and personally, and they meet many

Volunteering

community partners and learn about resources available through-out the community.

ties for you, too. If you are interested in getting involved with CIS of Henry County in any way, please contact us at 678-432-4499. Thank you!

Are you looking for a way to directly make a difference in the life of a child? If so, then consider volunteering in our mentoring program, which will pair you up with a child whom you will meet with for the amount of time you are available. There are countless students in Henry County in whose lives you could make a difference. A core belief of CIS is that it is not programs that change a child’s life, rather it is relationships. So you can help a child to achieve in life by volun-teering.

If you want to get involved in planning events and programs, we have opportuni-

© 2013

Communities In

Schools of Henry

County

70 Macon Street

McDonough, GA

678) 432 4499

To sign-up for our

email newsletter, visit

us at:

www.CIS-Henry.org

© 2013 Communities In Schools - Henry | 70 Macon Street | McDonough, GA 30253

V O L U M E 2 , I S S U E 1

Donate to CIS Henry We need your help in our mission of

surrounding students with a com-

munity of support, empowering

them to stay in school and achieve

in life. Your donation will help pro-

vide children with the programs and

support that they need to succeed

and graduate.

You can donate any time by visiting

our website:

www.CIS-HENRY.org

and click on the “How to Help” tab.

Thank you for your support!