WHO WE ARE...

Organized in 2003 to serve at-risk students in rural Alaska, we are founded on the recognition that most students who drop out of school are dealing with a variety of obstacles that present barriers to their education and that only a few of these are school-related; most stem from overarching family and community issues like poverty, alcohol and drugs and violence.

We recognize that numerous public & private services already exist in our community to help children & their families overcome these obstacles. However, given:
                - the difficulty of deciphering the maze of resources available
                - the time & transportation necessary to reach them
...SERVICES ARE NEARLY INACCESSIBLE FOR THOSE FAMILIES WHO NEED THEM MOST.

WHAT WE DO...

We are not another social service agency! We broker in an effective and coordinated way, EXISTING community services through the schools.

We believe that there are 5 basics to helping kids stay in school and prepare for life:
                1. A one on one relationship with a caring adult
                2. A safe place to learn and grow
                3. A healthy start and a healthy future
                4. A marketable skill to use upon graduation
                5. A chance to give back to peers and the community

Through school-based programs and special programs, CIS of Alaska is creating a network of social services, businesses, community resources and volunteers that work together to break down barriers to ensure even the most vulnerable of our children have access to these basics and core needs.

HOW WE KNOW IT WORKS...

Common sense tells us that health and human services are critical for all children... and that by making resources available al the school campus more of our community's most at-risk kids will be able to access them. But how we know that we are helping kids learn, stay in school, and prepare for life is we evaluate our efforts on an ongoing basis by tracking indicators of student success, like: attendance and stay-in-school rates, improved academic performance and improved behavior to determine the impact of our programs.

In addition to our 2006-2007 year results, here are highlights of our successes:

• Since implementation in January 2005, CIS of Juneau has served approximately 452 students pre-K to 12th grade. Of that number served through the Care Coordinator, only 16 dropped out of school; 96% stayed in school, a much higher rate as compared to the general population.
• We have sponsored Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library (preliteracy program) in two pilot projects; Nome and Juneau to hugely positive results with over 600 children being served to date. Additionally, the Rotary has begun a pilot program in Wainwright, AK and the Girdwood Rotary is poised to begin a program there.  Funding has also been received to start pilot programs in Mat-Su and Mt. View.  
• The Career Exploration Opportunities (CEO) program, a web-based video conferencing, distance education outreach program to rural communities, founded by GCI, came under the umbrella of CIS of Alaska in 2006. Seventy students participated in CEO last school year and currently 121 are enrolled with capacity for 150.
• The Helping Agencies Forum, designed to bring youth serving agencies together to discuss issues and explore ways to maximize their resources and work together is enjoying good success and serves as a connector tool to existing resources; the trademark of what CIS is all about.
• Through partnership with the Alaska Staff Development Network (ASDN), CIS of Alaska co-hosted four Drop-out Symposiums (in Anchorage, Fairbanks and Juneau) to build awareness of the drop-out issue and help professionals and practitioners identify major risk factors and effective prevention strategies based on current, evidence based research conducted by the National Dropout Prevention Center/Network (in collaboration with CIS National).  Based on the critical nature of this issue and the success of both the Symposiums, CIS of Alaska and ASDN plan to replicate this event annually, offering valuable new information and training around the drop-out issue to educators, youth serving professionals and practitioners and the community at large.