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Since 2018, Sanger ISD has transformed its approach to supporting students and families by leveraging key state and community grants to build an integrated, districtwide ecosystem of academic, behavioral, and social‑emotional support. This work began with the TEA Community Partnership Grant, which focused on expanding and enhancing PreK programming. Through full‑day PreK, high‑quality professional development, collaboration with community childcare providers, and adoption of an evidence-based assessment system, the district more than doubled PreK enrollment and increased Kindergarten readiness from 39.6% to 75.2% within two years. 

As deeper relationships with families and community partners developed, the district identified significant non-academic challenges—food insecurity, mental health needs, and limited access to social‑emotional supports—that hindered student success. In 2019, a partnership with TX Health Resources Foundation launched the THRIVE Program, growing from 5 initial partners to more than 40 community organizations united to meet foundational needs through wraparound resources. 

In 2021, the Stronger Connections Grant provided the structure necessary to align and amplify these efforts to ensure maximum impact. Through collaboration between grants and numerous community organizations, Sanger ISD has been able to provide high-impact programs including:

• Back-to-School Community Resource Fair supporting hundreds of families with school supplies, physicals, immunizations, and connections to local agencies.
• Linda Tutt High School Student‑Run Grocery Store, which has served 10,300+ families and receives ongoing financial and material support from national brands, local nonprofits, and community groups.
• Community Strong Farm, supplying fresh produce for families and reinforcing sustainable food access.
• Weekly food deliveries through the Tarrant County Food Bank and an Annual Christmas Fair supporting 300 families with holiday gifts.
• Districtwide mental health and behavioral supports including counseling, skills groups, parent support, universal behavioral screening, and coordinated intervention planning.
• A district-wide commitment to supportive school discipline including PBIS, Conscious Discipline, and Restorative Discipline at all campuses.

Coordinating grants has enabled Sanger ISD to move from isolated initiatives to a unified community model of support that integrates academic preparation, social services, and behavioral supports. The district’s work demonstrates that student success increases when families are supported, barriers are removed, and community organizations work together toward shared outcomes. This unified approach has strengthened resilience, enhanced access to essential resources, and improved the overall well-being of students from early childhood through graduation.

Miles Ahead Scholars Program: Transforming Futures 

In 2019, a collaborative effort between the Houston Independent School District (HISD), Texas Senator Borris Miles, and the Texas Education Agency led to the launch of the Miles Ahead Scholars (MAS) Program. This transformative initiative is dedicated to improving educational outcomes for students enrolled in three select HISD high schools: Wheatley, Worthing, and Kashmere. 

The MAS Program addresses the educational needs these students face by focusing on three key areas: academic achievement, college and career advising, and exposure opportunities. Our commitment to empowering scholars has already yielded remarkable results. The recent graduating class of 2023 worked diligently, collectively earning over $2.5 million in scholarships to further their education at universities across Texas, including two recent scholars currently attending The University of Texas at  Austin and Trinity University. 

Through our program, we are not only transforming the lives of our scholars but also fostering a brighter future for our communities. Join us in celebrating their achievements and supporting the next generation of leaders!

Pharr-San Juan-Alamo ISD (PSJA ISD) is a school district in southern Texas serving nearly 30,000 students. In 2018, PSJA ISD received the SSI Community Partnerships Grant (CPG) through the Texas Education Agency (TEA) to support the development and expansion of partnerships between the district and community organizations.

PSJA ISD has a dedicated group of parents who are members of the Parent District Advisory Council (DAC).  This council consists of DAC parents, with each campus having its own leadership team led by a Parent President, Vice-President, and Secretary. The DAC seeks to empower parent leaders and strengthen relationships by keeping them informed about district initiatives and inviting their feedback. 

To align with each year's agenda and discussion topics, the parental engagement department organized parent-led groups, conducted surveys, and facilitated focused discussions on current programs and district needs. This approach enables the department to continuously gather input from parent leaders, keeping them informed about district initiatives while allowing them to express their ideas and concerns.

PSJA has several grant initiatives and partnerships designed to support families in various ways, including the Health and Human Services Commission, the HEB READ3 Early Literacy Curriculum, the Wraparound Resources Guide for Families, and My Reading and Math Academy.

When we began the grant, PSJA ISD identified and worked to achieve the following goals under the grant by 2022: 

• Increase the percentage of 3 and 4-year-old children accessing high-quality Pre-K programs by 10%
• Increase the capacity of new or existing high-quality programs made available by 10%
• Ensure that 75% of children are kinder-ready.

 We started by focusing on five elementary schools and have since expanded. We now partner with 16 local childcare facilities by providing curriculum and licensed teachers. We have also opened Building Blocks Academy which serves Pre-K and Kinder. The academy has two model classrooms and an observation room where college students and current teachers can observe high-quality teaching in action and receive training in best practices. 

PSJA ISD has become a state leader in creating an early childhood one stop hub. The PSJA ISD values various high-quality school readiness initiatives and a brand of excellence within our community and childcare partners. Due to these remarkable accolades, leaders from across the state of Texas are drawn each year to tour the PSJA ISD Early Childhood Initiatives.

In Pleasant Grove, a neighborhood of Dallas ISD, we seek to empower students and families with economic and educational opportunities, and social and academic development through intentional and connected partnerships. We strive to strengthen our community by providing families with effective schools and access to high-quality coordinated programs for social services, health, and academic support. The SSI Community Partnership Grant has been vital in the development of a resource center to achieve our mission.

The resource center is a hub for our community's social services and academic programs. Our Pleasant Grove Family Resource Center nourishes partnerships with different non-profit mentoring organizations including LACROSSE for Dallas, Texas Soccer Revels, VOX INVICTUS Basketball Program, and Boy Scouts of Texas. Our partnering organizations work hand-in-hand with our schools to offer free afterschool programs. One significant partnership is with Boy Scouts of America who work to build our scholars' social-emotional skills and leadership capacity throughout our vertical team. Our high school Boy Scout Troop mentors our middle school students, who in turn mentor the elementary school students. 

In addition, we have designed academic family events focused on presenting our curriculum in a fun way to our families. Our yearly Pumpkin Math & Science Night was held on Halloween, which served over 1,000 participants. The elementary schools harvested the pumpkins for the event and a middle school hosted and organized the event. The middle school and high school teachers designed and ran the academic stations that were open to all schools in our area. Other community academic events include our Young Men's Leadership Academy (YMLA) Lego Masters Reading Night, "Me Enloteces Loteria Night," FAM JAM, and many others. 

The aligning of our feeder pattern partnerships and academic events among the grant-partnering schools has also increased our parent involvement. This increase has translated to gains in our state academic scores. This all possible because of the support of the SSI Community and Partnership Grant, which allows us to purchase all the required equipment needed to support our school community engagement and programs. Upcoming in our next cycle are the development and implementation of mental health support through the activation of sensory rooms.