Evansville, IN Community Schools Initiative Featured in Ed Week

04/20/11

Evansville Vanderburgh School Corporation (EVSC) in Evansville, IN, is one of the many school districts across the Nation that is implementing the community school strategy to meet the needs of their students, families, and communities. Ed Week reporter, Mary Ann Zehr, shares stories from first person accounts with families, school faculty, and students from Lincoln K-8 School and Glenwood Leadership Academy. The article highlights, the innovative approaches that EVSC is using in their district to meet the needs of the community. These stories illuminate the partnerships and resources that EVSC weaves together to provide for its schools and community through this strategy.

Key to their community schools strategy is partnerships with local churches, social service providers, and community-based organizations that have been fostered over the years. Additionally, they have been able to implement this strategy as a result of their ability to leverage grants from 14 federal funding (e.g., Titles I, II, III, IV, Full Service Community Schools grant, Even Start, and others) streams as well as community resources. EVSC has been recognized by education scholars and practitioners around the country as an exemplar model of a community school strategy.

Fundamental to their success has been the support from their Superintendent Dr. Vince Bertram, a strong advocate of this strategy. Dr. Bertram credits the community school strategy with helping to raise student achievement. Four school years ago, only one of the district’s schools was "exemplary," the top ranking of five in Indiana’s accountability system. Last school year, 17 district schools were deemed "exemplary."

Read the full article here.