Provide sustainable, dedicated funding for community school coordinators plus technical assistance and capacity-building¶

Strategy · All strategies
Evidence · no claims cited

Description¶

The brief recommends that states provide "a sustainable, long-term, dedicated funding stream for the coordinator position," noting some states put such staffing allocations into the formula for all high-poverty schools. It further recommends that policymakers "help develop and provide resources for a stronger system of technical assistance and capacity-building efforts that lead to fidelity of practice," while allowing local flexibility.

Design Implications¶

Context¶

Requirements¶

• Stable state investment to seed, expand, and sustain the strategy

Constraints¶

• Recent funding reductions destabilized local implementation, causing reduced services, eliminated positions, and constrained programming

Target Learners¶

• Students in high-poverty community schools

Target Learning Goals¶

• Sustained implementation fidelity and continued improvement in climate, attendance, achievement, and graduation outcomes

Related Strategies¶

• Cultivate a supportive peer community among coordinators and connect them to county and state professional development to sustain the role
• Short-term and longer-term state steps to scale community schools to all high-poverty schools
• Three state approaches to supporting community schools: ongoing school funding formula allocations, competitive grant funding, and capacity-building supports

Examples¶

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Key Sources¶

• Germain, E., Maier, A., & Espinoza, D. (2025). New Mexico community schools: Improving student opportunities and outcomes. Learning Policy Institute. https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/product/new-mexico-community-schools-outcomes-brief