Who We Are

The Cleveland Challenge, a group of community leaders dedicated to establishing “community excellence” brought the Communities In Schools (CIS) model to Cleveland County in 1991 as one answer to the critical concern for education. Communities In Schools began serving students in 1992. Currently, Communities In Schools provides services to students both during the school day and in after-school programs at six school sites, which includes all four area high schools, Burns Middle, and Shelby Intermediate.

Communities In Schools’ model is based on the core areas of Academics, Behavior, Coursework, and Parental Engagement, which we refer to as our ABC+P model. We work collaboratively with Cleveland County Schools as a strong partner to identify underserved students who demonstrate that they are in need of support in one or more of these areas to ensure that they graduate. In addition, we provide enrichment opportunities, cultural experiences, mentoring, leadership opportunities, and other supplemental programming.