City Connects in Catholic Schools

Coordinators make plans for a challenging summer

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Summer is usually when City Connects Coordinators make sure that students are enrolled in camp or summer school or other programs that will support their growth and development. 

But now, coordinators are planning around the COVID-19 pandemic. 

“Summer is a moving target this year,” Lynne Sullivan, City Connects’ Director of Implementation, says. School districts are trying to figure out what programs they can safely offer. Some camps are closing. And parents, especially those who have to go to work, are facing uncertainty. 

“One of the things that coordinators are trying to balance this summer is an emphasis on trying to make up for academic learning loss and address students’ need for social-emotional support,” Sullivan adds.

In City Connect schools across the country, this means connecting students to a mix of creative opportunities.  Continue reading →

Minnesota meets coronavirus-generated needs

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To cope with the effects of the coronavirus on students and families in Minnesota, City Connects Coordinators started with the basics: making sure families had access to food, housing, and emergency child care. 

Coordinators made phone calls and sent out surveys to assess needs. They worked with restaurants that were donating free lunches. They worked with Sheridan Story, a local nonprofit organization, that sends food home in backpacks. 

“At this point, all our families can access food,” Laurie Acker, Minnesota’s City Connects Program Manager, says. 

But that was just step one. 

Step two was becoming Internet-ready. Coordinators made sure that students had Internet access and laptops. That meant connecting families to free municipal WiFi or helping them sign up for low-cost plans so their children could participate in distance learning. One coordinator also set up a website with resources for families. Coordinators are also organizing social emotional skills groups online and creating related videos. And they are running Student Support Team meetings (where individual students’ needs are reviewed) online.  Continue reading →

City Connects takes flight in Ohio

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Left to right: Ryan Hand, City Connects Communications Manager; Susan Eichenauer, City Connects Program Manager; Brittany Lewis, City Connects Coordinator


Earlier this week, City Connects attended “Leadership for Learning,” the Ohio School Board Association’s annual conference. 

The event is “Ohio’s premier continuing education program — delivering practical solutions to help school district governance teams improve student learning and achievement.” 

We attended the conference’s trade show and shared the work we’ve been doing in Ohio, where City Connects has been implemented at the K-8, the high school, and the college levels. 

As we’ve blogged, City Connects was recently written into Ohio’s state budget as one model that schools can use to provide students with integrated student support – the opportunities and services they need outside of school so that they can thrive in school. 

“We’re proud and excited to share our work with Ohio educators,” Mary Walsh, City Connects’ Executive Director says. “And we hope that as more teachers and administrators learn about what we do, they will look to enlist us as trusted partners. We know that poverty can make it difficult for children to do well in school. But we also know how to address these challenges so that students and teachers can focus on the kind of learning that leads to long-term academic success.”

Ohio incorporates City Connects into its state budget

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Ohio has made crucial budget progress that includes City Connects. 

Last May, when we blogged about Ohio, Lieutenant Governor Jon Husted had visited Chaminade Julienne High School in Dayton to see City Connects in action. 

“We believe that this is a replicable model that can be used in public schools and other schools across the state,” Husted told WHIO Television. “And we want the new money that’s being put into the budget to serve these students to go to programs like this.” 

At the time, Ohio’s Legislature was considering investing $550 million to provide “wraparound services” in the state’s schools, and City Connects provided a local example of how investment in evidence-based approaches positively impacts Ohio students. Continue reading →

A teacher talks about City Connects

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Julie Roberts and her students


Fifth grade teacher Julie Roberts has worked at Catholic Central Elementary School in Springfield, Ohio, for more than 20 years. We recently asked her about how City Connects works in her school. Here’s what she said. 

What’s it like to work with Josh Richardt, her school’s City Connects Coordinator? 

“To have someone who can reach out to find resources for kids who need extra help or enrichment opportunities is extremely helpful, because that’s not something that as teachers we’re used to doing very often.” 

Enrichment is important because, “It can really help a student bloom if they find something that they’re good at that they haven’t been exposed to before.” 

How has the process of doing whole class reviews been? 

“At first, before we actually did the whole class review, I thought oh my gosh, how am I going to spend all morning on each student? But getting to talk about each student really opened my eyes to things I might not have been aware of, like personal or family challenges. Continue reading →

Relationships matter in City Connects schools

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It’s a new school year, so City Connects Coordinators are reinforcing existing relationships and building new ones. 

At Catholic Central Elementary School, in Springfield, Ohio, where City Connects’ Coordinator Josh Richardt works, he tells students in pre-k through fifth grade, “I am so glad you’re in school today.”

There is also a sign hanging in the hallway that says, “You belong here.” 

These messages weave students, especially new ones, firmly into the school’s fabric. And they build on a key finding from the developmental sciences: Relationships matter. Continue reading →

The Weekly Connect 6/17/19

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Here’s the new edition of The Weekly Connect. Check it out and sign up to have it delivered to your inbox!

These are some of the things we’ve been reading about:

State leaders in Ohio see City Connects as a model that could be expanded.

A simple change to address absenteeism.

Holding parents accountable for their children’s bullying.

In the United States, 3 million students do not have Internet service at home.

To read more, click on the following links.

Continue reading →

The Weekly Connect 5/27/19

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Here’s the new edition of The Weekly Connect. Check it out and sign up to have it delivered to your inbox!

These are some of the things we’ve been reading about:

Ohio’s Lieutenant Governor Jon Husted visits a City Connects program in Dayton.

Educators and policymakers should pay more attention to how toxic stress affects students. 

Across the country, governors have called for investing nearly $3 billion in early childhood education.

States and school districts are helping increasing numbers of homeless students.

To read more, click on the following links.

Continue reading →