Community Schools

Community Schools are a partnership between the City of Philadelphia, the School District of Philadelphia, and school communities designed to address the social determinants of health and remove barriers to learning. By focusing on factors like access to healthcare, stable housing, food security, and safe environments, Community Schools create the conditions for students to thrive. Each school has a full-time coordinator who fosters strategic partnerships and implements programs that promote wellness, stability, and expanded learning opportunities for students, families, and neighbors.

Community Schools PHL embrace the 4Cs—Connect, Coordinate, Collaborate, and Celebrate—to strengthen school and community ties. Activities in each school include but are not limited to:

• School Climate: Improving attendance, hosting school events, and organizing resource fairs to create welcoming and supportive learning environments.
• Authentic Family and Community Engagement: Connecting families through forums, arts and culture events, adult education classes, and parent cafés.
• Integrated Health and Social Services: Coordinating access to behavioral and physical health services, emergency assistance, food distribution, and other essential resources.
• Expanded Learning Time and Opportunities: Collaborating with partners to provide quality out-of-school time programs, enrichment programming, youth summer employment, and career exploration.

Philadelphia Community Schools serve thousands of students each year, and they thrive by leveraging public, private, and philanthropic resources to integrate strong leadership, meaningful family and community engagement, holistic student supports, enriched learning opportunities, and a positive school climate—using data-driven strategies to eliminate barriers and empower student success and strong families.