Urban districts throughout the nation are contending with declining enrollment, aging facilities in disrepair, persistently low student achievement, increased competition with charters, and severe fiscal constraints. Philadelphia is a case in point. Over the past year, the School District of Philadelphia (SDP) was forced to borrow $304 million…

District-led, dramatic change efforts in failing schools--including turnarounds and school closures--often face strong resistance from families and communities. Resistance may be based on years of tension and distrust between districts and communities, failed past school improvement efforts, or a lack of understanding about the chasm between a…

Over the past two decades, community organizing has emerged as an effective force for school improvement. In the context of shrinking education funding, stubborn opportunity and achievement gaps between low-income and wealthy children and between children of color and White children, and polarizing debate on school reform, community organizing…

Democratic partnerships of universities, schools, and an array of neighborhood and community organizations are the most promising means of improving the lives of our nation's young people. Over the past two decades, many colleges and universities have been experiencing a renaissance in engagement activities. Universities, once ivory towers, have…

Partnerships among schools, families, and community organizations can reconnect urban schools to their communities and improve results for young people and their families. This report provides an overview of Casey's investment philosophy and strategies, and its approach to defining and documenting grantmaking results. The report highlights the…

The partnerships described in this article represent the fruits of two decades of collaboration between the University of Pennsylvania (Penn), community organizations, and the public schools in Philadelphia (particularly schools in West Philadelphia, where Penn is located). Penn's Center for Community Partnerships (CCP) has worked with other…