In 2020, the Poughkeepsie City School District (PCSD) designated all seven of its schools as Community Schools. The decision behind the designation was to create schools that serve as community beacons, bringing together school and community resources to improve student success and create stronger families and healthier communities. Given the fact that a child’s waking hours between kindergarten and high school amounts to 20 percent in the school environment and 80 percent in the community, it is imperative that a school, home and community approach is employed to holistically address the evolving and emerging needs of children. Across the country, community schools build bridges between school, home, and community to facilitate a holistic approach that will better guarantee that children find success in and out of school.

PCSD Community Schools provide:

• Partnerships with an array of community organizations and stakeholders interested in the positive youth development of PCSD students
• Arts and Music programming in every school
• Full-time School Librarians
• Social Workers in every school
• Crisis Intervention Specialist in every school
• Mental Health Clinics (PMS and PHS)
• Funding to increase  the number of school fieldtrips
• Extended learning opportunities
• 1:1 Instructional devices to students and instructional staff
• Liaisons to increase new and cultivate existing community partnerships and parental engagement
• Parent supports and Free Workshops and Credentialing classes
• Online age and developmentally appropriate literacy resources
• And much more…..