Let’s Go All In For Kids!

Communities In Schools (CIS) impacts thousands of young lives daily in Charlotte’s public schools. For nearly 40 years, we have been a valued partner of CMS, working inside high-poverty Title I schools to provide students with the resources and relationships they need to be successful inside and outside the classroom. Our primary goal is to ensure that all students have equitable school experiences, educational opportunities, and the chance to achieve success, regardless of family income or neighborhood in which they live.

Yet the challenges in our schools today cannot be denied:

• More than half of CMS schools are now Title I (102 of 184 schools), with the majority of students living near or below the poverty line. CIS currently serves 56 schools within CMS, 44 of which are Title I.

• Nearly 1 in 3 CMS students (32%) were chronically absent in the 2021-22 school year, which is more than twice as high as before the pandemic. The absenteeism rates are even higher for Black, Hispanic, and economically disadvantaged students. These are the students that CIS serves.

Research shows that students living in poverty face more barriers, which negatively affect their attendance and academic performance. But we know that when given the appropriate tools, resources, and support, students can and will succeed!