$300K grant to help MMSD open 4 full-service schools

The Madison Metropolitan School District received a three-year, $300,000 grant to support community planning and implementation for four full-service schools, according to a release.

Full-service schools integrate community services into schools sties and work to connect students and families with needed services to make schools hubs of support, officials said.

“Full-service schools take our support for children and families in Madison to a new level. Many of our families still struggle with access to community services, but by integrating coordinated services where our children and families are every day, we will be better able to support families and our students,” Superintendent Jennifer Cheatham said in the release. “We are thrilled that thanks to the Madison Community Foundation, we’ll be able to work together to make full service schools a reality in Madison.”

Full-service schools integrate services like health care, academic tutoring, mentoring, food access or parent leadership opportunities into school sites, according to the release.

The grant is the largest the Madison Community Foundation has awarded this year, officials said.

District officials plan to launch two schools during the 2016-17 school year and two more schools during the 2017-18 school year, according to the release. As the planning process begins this year, the district will identify partners and ask parents and the community to help develop the model and coordinate services.