Our Purpose
- Create, maintain, and execute a research agenda focused on improving implementation and outcomes for students, community schools, families, and community members;
- Serve as a clearinghouse for research and implementation level best practices;
- Convene community school advocates around areas for collaboration and joint research; and
- Identify new funding streams to support high-quality research on community schools.
Joining the Network
Practitioners and researchers are encouraged to join and connect with, share, learn from, and collaborate with those in the Community Schools field and receive timely announcements of new research and funding opportunities. Those outside of these roles are also welcomed to join to learn more about Community Schools.
- Complete the RPN Membership Form
- Join the RPN Facebook Group
Past Events
2023 Webinars
- Youth Voice in Community Schools: Building Collaborative School Leadership Structures – January 24 (Webinar Slide Deck)
- U.S. Department of Education’s Evaluation of Full-Service Community Schools – February 23 (Webinar Slide Deck)
- Preparing the Next Generation of Community School Professionals – March 9 (Webinar Slide Deck)
- Best Practices for Family Engagement and Community-School Partnerships – April 21 ( Webinar Slide Deck)
2022 Webinars
- Defining and Adapting the Community School Strategy – February 16
- Community Schools Organizing: A Look Back and Forward – May 11
- The Critical Role of Community School Coordinators (in partnership with the Community Schools Coordinators Network) – October 27
- Building Systems for Participatory Research with Community Schools (in partnership with CSLN & UACS) – November 30
2021 Webinars
- Community Schools, Racial Justice and Equity – February 11
- Teaching and Learning in Community Schools – March 11
- Family Engagement in Community Schools – April 21
- The Roles of Principals in Community Schools – May 13
- Approaching Community Schools Research and Impact – June 17
- Lifting Up Community Schools’ COVID-19 Responses Through Research – September 29 (Webinar Slide Deck)
- Measuring Outcomes in Community Schools – October 14 (Webinar Slide Deck)
- The Need for Youth Voice in Community Schools – November 16 (Webinar Slide Deck)
- Sustaining Community Schools – December 9 (Webinar Slide Deck)
2019-2020 Webinars
- The Way We Do School: The Making of Oakland’s Full-Service Community School District – April 15, 2020
- The Impact of the New York City Community Schools Initiative – March 18, 2020
- The Dual Capacity Building Framework for Family-School Partnerships – February 19, 2020
- Postsecondary Readiness and Success in Community Schools – January 29, 2020
- Youth with Disabilities in Community Schools – October 23, 2019
- Return on Investment (ROI) Study for a Community School Coordinator – September 24, 2019
- Powerful Learning: Deeper Learning Lessons for Community Schools – August 20, 2019
- Community Schools: People and Places Transforming Education and Communities – July 17, 2019
- Powerful Learning: Addressing Real World Issues through Community School Classrooms – June 25, 2019
Recent Studies and Publications
Please use this form to share your updated research and publications with IEL CCS RPN. We will update our database regularly, and share the research and publications with all Coalition for Community Schools (CCS) networks.
- For the most updated studies and publications, click here.
- For additional Coalition for Community School resources, click here.
Community Schools Research Agenda
In collaboration with the University of Pennsylvania’s Netter Center for Community Partnerships, IEL’s Coalition for Community Schools Research Practice Network hosted a three-day virtual convening in July 2020 to develop a national Community Schools Research Agenda. The convening, “Powerful Learning: How Community Schools Support Learning and Thriving Students, Families, and Communities” brought together over 60 multi disciplinary researchers and practitioners who have contributed to the community schools knowledge base. Participants spent time in facilitated break out groups co-creating a national research agenda for community schools, and brainstormed topics, questions, processes, and methods to prioritize as we seek to grow and support the community schools movement. Finally, participants considered how to enact the Research Agenda and articulated their individual role in advancing the work. Click here to see the research agenda.
See and learn more about the major themes of our research agenda by selecting a component of the infographic below:
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CCS RPN Co-Chair Criteria
The network has 2 co-chairs, a practitioner and a researcher. Nominations criteria:
Practitioner:
- in a daily role/position within a community school initiative (school, district, or regional/state intermediary level)
- participated in community schools research or program evaluation (working alongside researchers)
- familiar with community schools research
- a part of one of our Coalition for Community Schools networks (desired, not required)
Researcher:
- has a body of research published specifically on community schools.
- engaged in community schools work, inclusive of e.g., Research-Practice partnerships or participatory action research.
- affiliated with a university or a research institution.
- has a completed doctoral degree.
- is a part of one of our Coalition for Community Schools networks (desired, not required)
Co-Chairs
Executive Director & Vice President at Communities in Schools of Pennsylvania
Jessica Knapp
jessica@cisofpa.org
Assistant Professor of Community Schools at Binghamton University
Dr. Naorah Rimkunas
rimkunas@binghamton.edu