City Connects

Shannon Baker

To enhance the educational experience at your son’s/daughter’s school, Catholic Central School works with a comprehensive student support system to ensure that each and every student receives the services and resources he or she needs to be academically successful and healthy.

We also acknowledge that each student is unique. For example, some students benefit best from enrichments, such as arts, sports, clubs or leadership programs. For others, targeted intervention services—such as after-school programs, basic health education, and tutoring—are the best match.

The mission of City Connects is to have all students engage with and learn in school by connecting each student with the tailored set of prevention, intervention, and enrichment services he or she needs to thrive. We do this by assessing the strengths and needs of each student through conversations with teachers and others in the school. Every student is then connected to a unique set of services or enrichment in the community designed to help each child reach his or her full potential.

City Connects Catholic Central

What is City Connects?

City Connects is a school-based student support model that leverages the services and resources of city community agencies. City Connects was developed in the late 90s by Boston College to better connect local schools with the services and community agencies already in existence in their neighborhood. Bridge gap of missing resources and programs which help students thrive academically. It is an evidence-based, proven method to help students be more successful in and out of the classroom. Catholic Central saw the benefits of this model and added it to our team in 2013.

The School Site Coordinators at Catholic Central link students to the services and enrichments that match their individual strengths and needs. He or she also develops partnerships with community agencies to secure services and enrichment opportunities. The City Connects coordinator then follows up to assure service delivery and effectiveness.

City Connects Coordinators reach out to families, acting as a bridge between home and school and linking you to a wide variety of resources. Our team is always available to talk with you about your concerns and needs.

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Some Of Our Services Include:

  • Helping families through transitions and encouraging visits to the school
  • Recommending and connecting you to services in the community. Our team works to provide your student with as many local services and opportunities as we can fit into an academic year. We work with over 50 community partners in Springfield, Ohio, plus Central and Southwest Ohio areas each year to bring in relevant and educational services and programs to our students.
  • Responding to family crises and offering support
  • Providing information on school processes and service options
  • Assisting you in addressing disciplinary or behavior issues at home
  • Finding ways to address language barriers
  • Academic support or tutoring referrals
  • Enrichment opportunities in sports, music, art and leadership
  • Vacation and summer learning opportunities
  • Counseling
  • Mentoring
  • Social skills groups
  • Transportation assistance
  • Family assistance

Reach Out To Our Coordinators:

Our team of coordinators is always available to you and we encourage you to reach out and learn more. Your child has an assigned coordinator based on their current grade. Here is how you can get in touch:

Grades 6-12 – Rosie Bond – rbond@ccirish.org

Pre-K and Elementary – Shannon Baker – sbaker@ccirish.org

Examples of programs overseen and put together by City Connects:

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ECHO Mental Health Counseling

Empowering Children with Hope and Opportunity, or ECHO, is an initiative to bring counseling and social service programs to all Catholic Central students. Our counselor is dedicated to Catholic Central, Monday – Friday, for the school year. This program is in partnership with the University of Dayton.

Title 1 Tutoring

Five Title 1 tutors focus on bringing students to their grade level benchmarks for reading and math.

ELL (English Language Learning)

Our full-time English Language Learning teacher serves our Hispanic students – the fastest growing segment of enrollment at Catholic Central.

Intervention Specialists

Three full-time Intervention Specialists serve our students with building and intervention plans – the second fastest growing segment of enrollment at Catholic Central.

Guidance Counselor

Our full-time K-12 Guidance Counselor provides college and career preparation and tools for our students. The Guidance Counselor utilizes key programs such as Naviance – the leading college, career, and life readiness platform – to discover career interests and academic pursuits.