What's ahead in our February newsletter:

• Join us next week for our Bingo + Bourbon fundraiser (get your tickets here!)
• An update on our tornado relief efforts
• Stories from our schools (including an inspiring mural project)
• Partner spotlight: Jackson
• How you can get involved in our work (come read to elementary schoolers!)

Enjoy a fun night out for a great cause while playing bingo, winning great prizes, bidding on some unique bourbon and whiskey, and, most importantly, helping to raise money to support our work with students and families across the state. A special thank you to our event sponsors: Capital Alignment Partners, Dollar General, Ingram Content Group, and Inflammo.

Meet Our Bingo Caller, Laura! You may recognize Laura Schweizer as the host of Local on 2, airing weekdays at 2 pm on WKRN. She is a great supporter of Communities In Schools, and we are so thrilled that she has agreed to serve as our bingo caller for the evening!

Watch Laura's visit to one of our schools.

Meet The Whiskey House Learn more about Bingo + Bourbon and our partner, The Whiskey House, in our recent segment on Today in Nashville. The only way you can visit the Whiskey House is through a nonprofit auction like ours - come bid on an experience next week!

Watch the segment.

The Chicken Run

In a challenge called the “Chicken Run,” five 5th grade boys at Bellshire Elementary successfully held each other accountable to improve their behavior and avoid school suspensions for the month of January. Their reward? A Raising Cane's chicken lunch, and a visit from their former CIS program manager.

Most Improved

Our program manager at Tom Joy started doing study hall sessions with a student who was struggling and helped with transportation for her to join Saturday school. They spent time during her recess to catch up on English work, and practice her spelling. All that hard work is paying off; the student was recently recognized as the "Most Improved" in her class!

Meet Eddie

After becoming the father of a child with medical needs, Eddie’s attendance and grades began to decline due to late night feedings, hospitalizations, doctor appointments and lack of sleep.

Read about how his CIS program manager helped him not only stay on track, but graduate early and enroll in college.

One of our Nashville program managers, Karimah Taylor, is an artist and received a grant that resulted in three murals being painted at CISTN partner schools: Warner Elementary Arts Magnet School, Madison Middle School, and Amqui Elementary School. Read more about this inspiring project.

We have been inspired by the way our staff, schools, and community have come together to support students and families facing power outages, property damage, injuries, and more in the aftermath of the December tornadoes. We had six schools in the Madison area impacted by the storms, including Amqui Elementary School, which, with the support of many outside partners, became a critical resource center.

At Smithson Craighead Academy, 30 families received food boxes, blankets, coats, heaters, toiletries, generators, and clean up assistance. Staff volunteers put together and delivered non-perishable food boxes and dinner for those in need. 

Relief efforts at Goodlettsville Middle School focused on providing families from Goodlettsville and six surrounding schools with flashlights, blankets, food, gift cards, and detergent.

Our goal at CIS is to surround students and families with a community of support and empower them to stay in school and achieve in life. Thanks to this support, many of the students continued their positive attendance growth even in the aftermath of the storm.

Looking to get more involved with Communities In Schools of Tennessee? There are a number of things you can do, including:

• Attend an event, such as our upcoming Bingo + Bourbon fundraiser, or one of our monthly site visits (contact Leah Susi for more information about site visits).
• Join us on March 1 at KIPP Kirkpatrick Elementary School for Read Across America Day! Volunteers will join classrooms for their morning meetings in celebration of Read Across America Day.
• Send supplies directly to one of our schools by shopping their individual wish lists.
• Volunteer through ongoing opportunities like Reading Buddies, or onsite, school-specific projects, such as organizing supplies or Field Day. Contact Kennedy Wallace for additional information about upcoming volunteer opportunities.
• Support our work with students and families across the state through a direct donation to CISTN.