NEW YEAR NEW STRATEGIES
The new school year presents us with opportunities and challenges. Children are back in school and happy to be there! They’re greeted by dedicated people who have made the decision to work in that environment despite the perceived and/or actual risks. Kids meanwhile are excited to see the rest of their support system including our Site Coordinators and PrimeTime Mentors.
This year we are looking to keep kids in schools by providing hope. We want to ask every child we serve what do they hope to do after high school and how will they achieve that goal? We normally focus on the short term; attendance, behavior and course completion. We trained our staff in motivational interviewing once last year and again this year. We now have the ability to let the student say in their own words what they want to achieve and what issues they need to address in order succeed. That deviates from the traditional “prescriptive” model of telling the student what their shortcomings are and handing them a plan.
This year we will also bring adults from various trades and businesses to speak to kids about options. We want to have everyone from architects to plumbers, to electricians to IT managers give them ideas about the relation of work to school and to earnings. Families are so inundated with issues these days that conversations like this don’t take place nearly as often as they may have previously. We think that most students don’t know that an apprentice lineman can make $60,000 their first year after graduating from high school and completing a 16-week training program at community college.
If you would like to be a CIS Career speaker, please contact our Volunteer Coordinator, Kelley Hinrichs and she will have a conversation about aligning your interests with the needs of our students. We think this is going to be a good year despite everything!
Sincerely,
Chuck Teegarden
Executive Director
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CISSC and The ZoNE Summer Programs Highlights |
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In the first summer running 21st CCLC programs at our four sites, we had great success providing fun and enriching activities for students.
We were able to serve upwards of 95 students. In partnership with Spokane Public Schools staff and administrators, our program was able to provide academic support in math and Language Arts.
Along with academics, the students participated in Skyhawks sports, arts &crafts, recreation activities, STEM lessons, and a variety of field trips.
Over the course of the summer, the students went to Bowl and Pitcher, Mobius, Riverfront Park, Manito Park, Pattisons, and North Bowl.
We are excited to be working with Logan, Lidgerwood, Garry, and Shaw in partnership with The ZoNE, and provide great summer and after school programs for the future.
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Help us continue to offer these amazing opportunities for our local students! |
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PrimeTime Mentoring & Tutoring |
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Hello PrimeTime Mentors,
We are gearing up for this Fall’s PrimeTime Mentoring launch and our hope is to resume our in-person connections. At this time, we are waiting to hear specifics regarding district’s volunteer protocols. I know many of you are anxious to reconnect with your student so I will update you as soon as I have more information.
Additional Volunteer Opportunities
We are looking for volunteers!
We are in need of support from community members like you. Please see the volunteer opportunities listed below. Please contact our Volunteer Director, Kelley Hinrichs kelley@cisspokane.org for more information.
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KREM2 Sweet Reads: Wednesday, October 13th from 3-7pm at The Spokane County Fairgrounds. We will be handing out books and snacks to kids to encourage reading.
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Wednesday, November 10th from 3-8pm at Mead High School for the Trades Career Fair, needs are registration, ushering etc.
- Tree of Sharing, we will have volunteer opportunities to hand out gift tags at the local malls from 11/26-12/17.
- We also need some people that can be on call to help us sort and deliver gifts to our sites between 12/13-12/17.
PrimeTime Mentoring - Serve as a Virtual Mentor through our PrimeTime Mentoring Program. Do you have 30 minutes once a week? We have students waiting to be matched with you.
PrimeTime Tutor - Serve as a Virtual Tutor for students needing educational support. Weekly sessions are 45 minutes in length. We will work to match you with your preferred student age/school subject.
Click on the link below to sign up for PrimeTime Mentoring or PrimeTime Tutoring !
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Central Valley School District Creates
Student & Family Engagement Center
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The Central Valley Student & Family Engagement Center created a community hub that serves the social, emotional, academic, medical, mental health and nutritional needs of students and families in our community. The center opened August 2021.
This is a great resource for our families!
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Marcella Godina
Medical Lake Middle School Site Coordinator
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We would like to recognize Marcella and her powerful story for National Hispanic Heritage Month |
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“They Tried to bury us, they didn’t know we were seeds” / “Quisieron enterrarnos, pero se es olvido que somos semillas.”. I am the daughter of migrant workers, whose hands cultivated the earth, their love filled my spirit with confidence and support. I am first generation migrant student, a title I hold proudly. A title I had to learn to love and accept overtime. As a child I knew my purpose in life is to help and serve people. whether its being a doctor, nurse, teacher, or a counselor, no matter the title I wanted to help people. I knew that my hometown was not able to provide nor satisfy my goals, having a good education was my ticket out. On top of being a migrant student I was also a minority throughout my middle and high school years. I struggled a lot in school, specifically in math and science, but that did not stop me in wanting to apply for a university. In my freshman year of high school, I had a meeting with my guidance counselor, I remember telling him my plans for college, I mentioned big named universities I wanted to apply for and my goals of serving people. After reviewing my records and grades and with a dismissive tone he shut down my aspirations and advised that I should stay in my hometown and try a different option. I left feeling defeated, dismissed, and unworthy to achieve any of my goals.
For the next four years I labeled myself as not good enough for college. Until I realized that I am much more than what my guidance counselor or anyone thinks of me. In 2016 I was accepted to Eastern Washington University and soon after became part of CAMP (College Assistant Migrant Program). In 2018 I became a mentor for CAMP assisting first generation college students as they navigate their first year of college. In summer of 2021, I graduated with my B.A in Sociology and minor in Chicana/o/x Studies. I took on a position as a site coordinator for Communities in Schools of Spokane County (CISSC) continuing my lifelong purpose of serving students and my community. Working for CISSC I can give support, advice, and provide a sense of belonging to students. I see myself in my students who feel unworthy, labeled, and already pre-destined to fail. There are barriers within educational opportunities for Hispanics in the United States. Many Hispanic students begin formalized schooling without the economic and social resources that many other students receive, and schools are often ill equipped to compensate for these initial disparities. For Hispanics, initial disadvantages often stem from parents’ immigrant and socioeconomic status and their lack of knowledge about the U.S education system. As Hispanic students proceed through the schooling system, inadequate school resources and their weak relationships with their teachers continue to undermine their academic success.
Through my position I hope to be their light, be the mentor that I wish I had when I was in school. To know that they are not alone, there is someone out there rooting for them, just as much I wished someone advocated for me. I am here to break that, by serving my Spokane and Latinx community. For students are the next generation of leaders, entrepreneurs, teachers, and healers. It is our job that we cultivate their path to success. As we enter Hispanic Heritage month, let us acknowledge students of Hispanic/Latinx backgrounds. May we celebrate and recognize the many contributions, diverse cultures, and extensive histories of the American Latinx community.
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THE BEST FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL EVER!
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Communities In Schools of Spokane County (CISSC) partners with the Coeur d’Alene Casino and KREM2Cares for our annual Tools2Schools campaign.
This year with our community of support we raised approximately $50,000 to purchase 2000 backpacks and supplies for our students and classrooms. Because of YOUR generosity, we were able to distribute backpacks and supplies to 21 schools in Spokane County, 15 schools in N. Idaho, 400 to the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Family Center and 200 backpacks and supplies to World Relief to meet the needs of the refugee students moving to Spokane County from Afghanistan.
We were so happy to have an in-person volunteer event and to see many familiar faces helping us stuff backpacks again. We are thankful to have YOU help us fulfill our mission to surround students with a community of support, empowering them to stay in school and achieve in life.
Special thank you to: Office Depot, Starbucks, MLK Jr. Center, Thrivent Financial, NAC Architecture, DCI Engineers, L&S Engineering, Coffman Engineers, MMEC Architecture, MSI Engineers, Michael Terrell Landscaping, Community Health Plan of Washington, Washington Trust Bank, Horizon Credit Union, Gesa Credit Union, Numerica Credit Union, Exit Real Estate, Molina, Traveler's Insurance.
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Gesa Credit Union team dropping off donated backpacks and supplies. |
Starbucks helped us raise money at 28 cafe's in Spokane by using QR codes. |
Office Depot helped raise $12,000 through their local stores. |
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“Giving is a part of our culture and represents our Coeur Values. We’ve long used the slogan, ‘Winning is Just the Beginning’ at the Coeur d’Alene Casino, but the slogan reflects much more than gambling. It reflects a deeply cultural commitment to share our own wealth, making winners of deserving individuals and charitable causes throughout the region.” |
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Thank You,
Coeur d'Alene Casino!
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This resource would not be possible without the vision and generosity of the Coeur d'Alene Casino.
Yvette Matt (Marketing Director) and Dee Dee McGowan (Cultural Tourism/Tour Bussing and Sponsorship Manager) spoke with us about the history of Tools2Schools.
"Tools2Schools was started in 2009. We used to collect supplies at the casino and match up to $5 in play cash. We would stuff the backpacks here and used our busses to get the backpacks and supplies to local schools."
They asked KREM2 for support and as the event grew they included Communities In Schools of Spokane County to help organize and distribute the supplies.
The Coeur d'Alene Casino continues to support the event with donations from their guests and use of their bus to deliver supplies to N. Idaho schools.
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