Campbell Middle School will become the first school in Volusia County to adopt the innovative Community Partnership Schools model this year with partnerships among Children’s Home Society of Florida, Daytona State College, Halifax Health and Volusia County Schools.

The partnerships are announced as the next step in growing the successful model first implemented in Orlando at Evans High School in 2012 and expanded to more than 40 schools statewide, transforming tens of thousands of lives.

The effective Community Partnership Schools model requires at least four core partners – including the school district, a healthcare provider, a nonprofit organization and a college or university – to agree to a 25-year commitment to the school and community, impacting generations.

Founded by the Children’s Home Society of Florida and the University of Central Florida, the Community Partnership Schools model engages core partners, collaborating with local nonprofits, businesses, the faith community, and other stake-holders.

Together, they operate within schools to tackle crucial barriers to learning, such as food insecurity, poverty inadequate access to affordable healthcare, behavioral health services, and heightened rates of violence and crime, among other identified challenges.

Children’s Home Society of Florida received $80,000 in state grant funds after being selected by UCF’s Center for Community Schools to launch a community partnership school at Campbell Middle, in ad- dition to local financial contributions to support this initiative.

“Volusia County Schools is ecstatic for Campbell Middle School to become a Community Partnership School, and we are so thankful to our partners at Children’s Home Society of Florida, Daytona State College and Halifax Health for joining together to make this possible,” said VCS Superintendent Dr. Carmen Balgobin. “We all know that it takes a village to raise a child, and this partnership is a pivotal step in our continued commitment to advancing education for the whole child.”

“Through our dedicated collaboration with core and community partners, we are eliminating educational barriers, helping students to wholeheartedly dedicate themselves to learning,” said Ernie Hamilton, executive director at Children’s Home Society of Florida. We are honored to be a part of the collaborative, forward-thinking initiatives that will surely create opportunities for every student at Campbell Middle School and we are so excited to join this passionate community in empowering students and families to realize their full potential.”

The first step toward implementation is the planning phase, which includes a community needs assessment. Students, teachers, parents and community members identify their primary needs and challenges, the results of which will determine the services and solutions that will be brought into the school.

Other critical components of this model include a focus on parental and family engagement, as well as comprehensive health and wellness efforts.

This collaborative approach leverages schools as central hubs toward improving child well-being by addressing key barriers to learning through counseling, medical and dental services, after-school enrichment, mentoring programs, and more.

Because they center on unique community needs, each Community Partnership School is different, but they all share a similar goal – to empower students to succeed in school and life. Specific successes through the Community Partnership Schools model include increased graduation rates, reduced disciplinary actions and increased parental involvement.

Children’s Home Society received additional planning grants to implement the Community Partnership Schools model at Bellview Middle School, Long Branch Elementary and Rutherford Middle & High School. Children’s Home Society is a core partner in 31 of 44 Community Partnership Schools in Florida – more than any other entity in the state.

Children’s Home Society of Florida serves more than 59,000 children and family members throughout the state each year. More information: www.chsfl.org.

Originally posted by Daytona Times