Communities In Schools of Houston

CIS Houston Board Members and the National TQS Review Committee

On December 8^th CIS Houston achieved National Accreditation by demonstrating compliance with all Communities In Schools new Total Quality System (TQS) standards.  CIS Houston, has for the more than 30 years of its operations been a part of a national affiliation of CIS organizations throughout the country. The Houston-based non-profit is one of the oldest and largest of the over 200 CIS affiliates located in 25 states and the District of Columbia.

CIS National developed the Total Quality System recently (the process began in 2006) to establish clear operational guidelines that ensure uniform quality and improved outcomes for all students being served by Communities In Schools affiliates.  The TQS system is part of an organization-wide commitment to evidence-based practice and the highest standards of accountability.

The TQS standards define expectations for effective non-profit business practices and for implementing the Communities In Schools model of integrated student support services at school sites.  The site standards are based on a five-year, longitudinal national evaluation conducted by an independent, outside evaluator that documented the impact of the Communities In Schools model.  The evaluation revealed that schools implementing the Communities In Schools model with high fidelity had higher graduation rates, lower dropout rates, and performed better than comparison schools in increasing the percentage of students meeting or exceeding math and reading proficiency in 4^th and 8^th grades, a crucial predictor of high school graduation.

CIS Houston has been pleased to participate in the TQS process with the recognition that uniformity in the quality of our practices helps raise and maintain the effectiveness of our services across the country.

 For more information about our National organization and other state and city affiliates go HERE.

Kids gathering the Assets for Themselves!

What if every youth in Houston knew the building blocks of a successful future?   Perhaps we could give them a list and say, “Here is what you need to succeed.” Most young people do want to be academically and socially successful, they just haven’t had parents or people in their lives that have been able to share those building blocks.

There are 40 building blocks that have research behind them.  They are the 40 Developmental Assets © from Search Institute.   The more of these building blocks a youth has the greater their chance for success and staying away from risky behavior.  Many of these “assets”(blocks) are things that can be added by the youth, such as joining organizations, participating in sports, reading.  Other assets come from other adults in their life, this might be a teacher, youth worker, Sunday School teacher, aunt or uncle.

These may seem like common sense but if you have not been raised with them, it is good to have a list.  The 40 are broken down in to 8 categories:  Support, Empowerment, Boundaries and Expectations, Constructive Use of time, Commitment to Learning, Positive Values, Social Competencies, and Positive Identity.

That is what Link Up Greater Houston is all about.

What we want Link Up Greater Houston to accomplish is:

1.  To inform more young people and adults about the 40 Developmental Assets;

2.  To inspire young people to add the assets that they don’t have;

3.  For every adult who works with youth to know the importance of building positive, caring relationships with all youth; and

4.  To inspire relationships with young people by adults and also to let young people know that they can help their peers.

Tristan Love Tells His Story

Link Up Greater Houston 2011 was on October 1 at the University of Houston.  The 2011 Keynote Speaker was Tristan Love, a graduate of Booker T. Washington High School in Houston.  As a freshman in high school he was kicked out of one school for participating in a gang fight.   He was introduced to the 40 Developmental Assets as a sophomore, and it became his road map for determining what he should do in high school.  Seven years later he is the Student Government President at Wiley College after 3 years of successful debate experience with the new “Great Debaters Team”.

LinkUp Houston Drew a Large Crowd Seeking the 40 Developmental Assets

Following the motivational keynote, students and youth workers attended 2 workshops.  More than 20 youth-serving agencies and non-profits came together to plan the day and provide the workshops.  These included Communities in Schools Houston, as well as Children at Risk, the City of Houston Health and Human Services, City Parks Department, Girls Scouts of San Jacinto Council, Harris County Dept. of Education (CASE), Harris County Triad, Mission Houston, Neighborhood Centers, Project Grad, University of Texas Health Science Prevention Research Center, the YMCA of Houston and the YWCA.

By Pat Rosenberg, another CIS Happy Board Member!

Have an extra coat in your closet? The need has never been greater and it’s never been easier to make a difference in our community.  Here is your opportunity to make sure that nobody goes without such a basic necessity as a coat this winter.

Spring Branch Middle School and Communities In Schools of Houston are collecting gently used (or new) coats and jackets to be distributed locally to children and adults.

Coats of all shapes and sizes are welcome.  

The collection box is located in the lobby of Spring Branch Middle School.

BACK-TO-SCHOOL GALA

ONLINE AUCTION –NOW OPEN!!

Our Gala Auction is LIVE!  And the auction offerings are to die for… but they’re much better to bid for! Online bidding is easy. Just go HERE  to see the 6 packages now available.  You may bid in increments or “Buy Now” to immediately take an item off the auction block and “win” it for yourself.

Bid on two glamorous nights at the Wynn Las Vegas, with airfare and show tickets to Le Reve!;

or a private suite for 14 people, with food, drinks and parking, at the Texans/Falcons game December 4^th;

or  five relaxing summertime nights at the Roaring Fork Club in cool Colorado, airfare to Denver and other fun activities included;

You can nab an exotic stay of unsurpassed luxury for 11 people at lovely Villa Koi in Puerto Vallarta.

Just added to this impressive line-up are: one week in a 3-bedroom beach house on sunny Amelia Island, Florida;

and a two-night stay for two at the Southwest at La Posada de Santa Fe Resort & Spa.

Our auction event adds big fun to our Gala and is a very important part of our fundraising. When it comes right down to it, the Gala and auction is our biggest private funder. Our online auction allows you to make our Gala a success even if you cannot join us!

So Bid now! Bid often!!  See you at the Gala October 20^th……. and thank you in advance!

Submitted in large part by Ellen Morris, another Happy Board Member!

Is there a chance you’ve been thinking about purchasing land in the beautiful Texas Hill Country? Would you also like to show your support for Communities In Schools while doing so? Our sister CIS in New Braunfels, TX has the opportunity to be the beneficiary of the proceeds of the “Live Beyond Challenge”. This is a monthly event that partners Copper Ridge (a beautiful Texas Hill Country community featuring 1 to 3 acre parcels situated just outside New Braunfels, Texas) and local non-profit organizations with the common goal of hosting monthly events focused on giving back to the community. Copper Ridge has agreed to donate $1,000 from every land purchase made during the Live Beyond Challenge event on November 5, 2011 to Communities In Schools of South Central Texas. Our friends at Copper Ridge tell us that most of their buyers come from the Houston area, folks who are looking to buy some land in a great community situated in between San Antonio and Austin.

Coincidentally this event at Copper Ridge (Saturday, November 5) also falls on the first weekend of Wurstfest (a unique celebration rich in German culture and full of Texas fun located in beautiful New Braunfels, Texas). So you can make a weekend getaway out of it!

For more details, please contact Christine Watson at Christine@cissouthcentraltexas.org or visit http://www.copperridgetx.com.

Submitted by: A. Randolph