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You’ve heard, “It takes a village to raise a child.” SCS are the embodiment of that saying – they are community hubs designed to provide wraparound academic, health, and social support for the entire community beyond the traditional 9 am – 3 pm school day. By leveraging community assets, resources, and external partnerships to provide comprehensive community care, SCS brings students, parents, educators, school staff, community members, and service providers together in a coordinated effort to promote neighborhood health and well-being. It is a community-led, community-driven approach to educational justice and equity.

SCS are not an unproven program. They are a paradigm shift in how we think about education.

In the run-up to this fall’s reopening, Richards Career Academy on Chicago’s South Side set out to reach 180 students the district had flagged as at risk of missing the school year’s start — here is how we did it.