Fair Haven ​“Community Schools” Land $2.5M Federal Grant

A ​“full-service community schools” model — with expanded arts and athletic programs, and after-school support for families and students alike — is coming to two Fair Haven public schools, thanks to a five-year, $2.5 million grant recently awarded by the U.S. Department of Education to the Clifford Beers Community Care Center.

Clifford Beers and the New Haven Public Schools (NHPS) district announced that grant in a Tuesday morning email press release. Fair Haven Alder Sarah Miller, who works at Clifford Beers as the organization’s director of strategy, implementation, and special projects, also sent out an email press release about the grant on Tuesday. 

She wrote that the money will be used to implement the Full-Service Community Schools model in the Fair Haven neighborhood, in partnership with New Haven Public Schools and a variety of municipal and community-based agencies.

The community schools model enriches the school programs available to students, while also transforming schools as community centers that serve both youth and families even during after-school hours. The partnership between Clifford Beers and local organizations will aim to strengthen enrichment programs in schools, increase academic supports for students, and improve resources for families. There will be a full-time Community School Coordinator and Family Support Care Coordinator at the school who will ensure access to services and programs. 

The planning phase will begin in January and continue through the first half of 2024. There will be opportunities for community members to weigh in. The model will be implemented in Fair Haven School first in August of 2024, and then continue with the Family Academy of Multilingual Exploration (FAME) in August of 2025.

“The Fair Haven neighborhood is an ideal location for full-service community schools because of the wealth of existing family support and youth enrichment programs and services,” Clifford Beers Executive Director Melanie Rossacci is quoted as saying in Tuesday’s press release. ​“The extension of our partnership with the New Haven Public Schools to incorporate the full-service community school model will dramatically enhance students’ and families’ access to essential programs and services, while also expanding and enriching opportunities.”

“We are grateful to have these additional resources reach the Fair Haven community, and we look forward to building on our
partnership with Clifford Beers and so many community organizations that provide such comprehensive support to our Fair Haven students and families,” added NHPS Supt. Madeline Negrón in the press release. ​“The community school approach will help ensure the successful integration of education into the life of the community, as well as crucial community resources into the life of the school.”

Click here to read Clifford Beers and NHPS’s press release in full. See below for Miller’s email press release in full.

Announcement - Community Schools for Fair Haven

Dear neighbors,

I write with good news for our neighborhood’s children and families: Clifford Beers Community Care Center, in partnership with the New Haven Public Schools and fourteen municipal and community-based agencies, was awarded a grant of $2.5M over five years from the United States Department of Education to implement the Full-Service Community Schools model in our neighborhood. In addition to serving as your Alder, I work as Clifford Beers’ Director of Strategy, Implementation, and Special Projects, and will continue my work in our neighborhood via this partnership.

Education scholar John Dewey wrote that schools should be ​“a genuine form of active community life, instead of a place set apart in which to learn lessons.” Community schools put this idea into practice by bringing expanded programs and services into schools during the school day, while activating school buildings as community centers that support children, youth, and families beyond school hours. There is powerful and transformative work happening inside our schools and community organizations. At the same time, the high levels of need among students and families, combined with decades of underfunding of our schools and social service agencies, call on us to seek greater investment and enhance our collaboration.

Fair Haven’s community schools will be stewarded by the ​“Grand Avenue Learning Corridor Partnership,” which is comprised of key organizations already serving our neighborhood: ARTE, Junta for Progressive Action, Catholic Charities of Centro San Jose, New Haven Free Public Library, Fair Haven Community Health Care, New Haven Federation of Teachers, New Haven Reads, United Way of Greater New Haven, Integrated Refugee and Immigrant Services, City of New Haven Youth and Recreation Department, City of New Haven Elderly Services Department, Dwight Hall at Yale, City Wide Youth Coalition, and CT Violence Intervention Program. The collaboration of these partners will focus on: 1) activating schools beyond the school day as youth and family resource spaces; 2) bringing expanded arts, athletics, cultural, and other enrichment activities into schools, during and beyond the school day; 3) infusing schools with enhanced academic interventions and supports; and 4) providing family support services and family leadership development opportunities. A full-time Community School Coordinator and Family Support Care Coordinator at each school will enable improved communication and access to this continuum of programs and services.

The first half of 2024 will be a planning phase with multiple opportunities for input from students, families, and our community. Implementation will begin at Fair Haven School in August 2024 and expand to the Family Academy of Multilingual Exploration (FAME) in August 2025.

The Partnership team welcomes questions, ideas, and additional collaborators. In January there will also be an opportunity to celebrate this investment in our neighborhood’s school communities — please stay tuned for a date and hope you’ll be able to join us.

Happy holidays and happy almost new year.

Sarah

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Estimados vecinos,

Escribo con buenas noticias para los niños y las familias de Fair Haven: Clifford Beers Community Care Center, en colaboración con las Escuelas Públicas de New Haven y catorce agencias municipales y comunitarias, recibieron una subvención de $ 2.5M por cinco años del Departamento de Educación de los Estados Unidos para implementar el modelo de Escuelas Comunitarias de Servicio Completo en nuestro barrio. Además de servir como su concejal, trabajo como Director de Estrategia, Implementación y Proyectos Especiales en la Clínica Clifford Beers donde ampliaré mi trabajo en nuestro barrio a través de esta nueva asociación.

El académico de la educación John Dewey escribió que las escuelas deberían ser ​“una forma genuina de vida comunitaria activa, en lugar de un lugar apartado en el que aprender lecciones.” Las escuelas comunitarias ponen en práctica esta idea llevando a las escuelas programas y servicios mejorados durante la jornada escolar, al tiempo que activan los edificios escolares como centros comunitarios que apoyan a niños, jóvenes y familias más allá del horario escolar. Hay muchas cosas que ya estamos haciendo bien dentro de nuestras escuelas y organizaciones comunitarias. Sin embargo, el alto nivel de necesidades de los estudiantes y las familias, combinado con décadas de infrafinanciación de nuestras escuelas y agencias de servicios sociales, nos obligan a buscar buscar una mayor inversión y mejorar nuestra colaboración.

Las escuelas comunitarias de Fair Haven serán gestionadas por la ​“Grand Avenue Learning Corridor Partnership”, formada por organizaciones clave que ya prestan servicio en nuestro barrio: ARTE, Junta para la Acción Progresiva, Centro San José, las Biblioteca Públicas New Haven, Fair Haven Community Health Care, la Federación de Maestros de New Haven, New Haven Reads, United Way of Greater New Haven, Servicios Integrados para Refugiados e Inmigrantes, Departamento de Juventud y Recreación de la Ciudad de New Haven, Departamento de Servicios para Ancianos de la Ciudad de New Haven, Dwight Hall en Yale University, City Wide Youth Coalition, y el Connecticut Violence Intervention Program. La colaboración de estos socios se centrará en 1) activar las escuelas más allá de la jornada escolar como espacios de recursos para jóvenes y familias; 2) ampliar las actividades artísticas, deportivas, culturales y de enriquecimiento en las escuelas, durante y más allá de la jornada escolar; 3) dotar a las escuelas de intervenciones y apoyos académicos mejorados; y 4) proporcionar servicios de apoyo a las familias y oportunidades de desarrollo del liderazgo familiar. Un Coordinador de la Escuela Comunitaria a tiempo completo y un Coordinador de Atención de Apoyo Familiar en cada escuela permitirán mejorar la comunicación y el acceso a este conjunto de programas y servicios.

La primera mitad de 2024 será una fase de planificación con múltiples oportunidades para la aportación de los estudiantes, las familias y nuestra comunidad. La implementación comenzará en la Escuela Fair Haven en agosto de 2024 y se expandirá a la Academia Familiar de Exploración Multilingüe (FAME) en agosto de 2025.

Avíseme si tiene preguntas, ideas y/o colaboradores adicionales en apoyo de los objetivos de la Asociación. En enero también habrá una oportunidad para celebrar esta inversión en las comunidades escolares de nuestro barrio — por favor, manténgase en comunicación para saber la fecha y unirse a nosotros.

Felices días de fiesta y feliz casi año nuevo.

Sarah