Reaching Heights brings groups together in support of elementary schools

According to Lisa M. Hunt, assistant director of Reaching Heights, “Behind every great student is a great community!” Reaching Heights, a nonprofit support organization to Heights public schools, is launching a new project called Community Care Teams, to build collaboration among service providers to the Cleveland Heights-University Heights elementary schools.

Family Connections, PTAs, LINK Parent Ambassadors, Heights Libraries, and Reaching Heights programs—Many Villages Tutoring, Role Models, and ECAG (Exceptional Children’s Advocacy Group)—are among the many nonprofit organizations and community groups that provide enrichment services to each of the seven elementary schools in the CH-UH City School District. Reaching Heights is seeking to work with these organizations to increase the success of their efforts through better communication and mutual understanding.

“Our hope is to work smarter together and discover better ways to support each other. We want to remove any mystery about who we are, the work we do, and how the community can join us in our efforts to boost student achievement,” said Hunt.

Community Care Teams will begin to form, with representatives from each organization meeting for a networking brunch at each school during the months of September or October. They will have the opportunity to share contact information and gain a basic understanding of each organization’s work. In January, the plan is to meet again, to consider more specific ways to collaborate, and create a community display board to post information about events, activities and program contacts.

The goal of these meetings is to align practices and begin thoughtful team-based planning, to provide the opportunity to hear and share district initiatives, cultivate cohesion, increase communication among organizations, reduce duplication of services and streamline efforts.