By Evelyn C. McDonald
Special Report
February 17, 2020
Last year Communities in Schools (CIS) brought an end to their 25-year history of promoting education for Nassau and helping students succeed. Dissolution of an organization doesn’t happen overnight. As part of the close-down process, CIS needed to identify another non-profit as recipient of any funds left over after all expenses were paid. The CIS board decided that they would give any such funds to an organization that served a similar clientele. The most likely organization, and one that had originally been part of CIS, was Take Stock in Children (TSIC).
Robin Lentz
Dawn Lunt, CIS treasurer, indicated that closing the organization had been a yearlong process but was finally ended. She appeared last Monday at the TSIC board meeting to hand a check to the TSIC board. The monies will enable TSIC to extend its support to additional students.
Communities in Schools is a national organization with chapters in 25 states and the District of Columbia. It was founded in 1970 with the mission of coordinating community services with students in need of them. The concept was that there are numerous community services that can assist students but identifying and involving those services with schools is often difficult. CIS organizations act as clearinghouses, identifying services and engaging them in supporting students.
TSIC took on the mission of providing mentors and scholarships to students. It was part of CIS until 2006 when it affiliated with the Florida State College of Jacksonville. TSIC receives funds from the State of Florida as well as donations of funds and support from Nassau County citizens.
A number of issues contributed to the CIS board’s decision to dissolve the organization. CIS had funding cut by one of its sources – United Way. Nassau County schools provided funding in past years. However, emphasis on increased safety and security on school properties had reduced the amount available to support CIS. The Executive Director resigned and finding a replacement would have been complicated by funding issues.
Ms. Hunt expressed gratitude that the work of supporting students, improving student performances, and improving graduation rates would be continued under TSIC.
Evelyn McDonald moved to Fernandina Beach from the Maryland suburbs of Washington, D.C. in 2006. Evelyn is vice-chair on the Amelia Center for Lifelong Learning and is on the Dean’s Council for the Carpenter Library at the UNF. Ms. McDonald has MS in Technology Management from the University of Maryland’s University College and a BA in Spanish from the University of Michigan.