COLLEGE PARK ELEMENTARY IS THE SITE FOR MARION COUNTY’S FIRST COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIP SCHOOL, PROVIDING WRAP-AROUND SERVICES FOR STUDENTS AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS IN THIS LOW-INCOME AREA OF OUR COMMUNITY.
OCALA, Fla. (January 6, 2021) – United Way of Marion County, and its Community School Partners; Marion County Public Schools, Public Education Foundation of Marion County, Ocala Health and the College of Central Florida are excited to announce that Marion County has established the first Community Partnership School in our community. In light of COVID-19, United Way of Marion County will be hosting a virtual ribbon cutting at College Park Elementary this Thursday, January 7, 2021 from 4:00pm-4:30pm to celebrate the official opening of the Community Partnership School’s home of the Huskey Den.
THIS IS NOT AN IN-PERSON EVENT. The public is invited to join this virtual ribbon cutting and tour of the Husky Den online via Facebook live by visiting https://fb.me/e/11A1xH4oi. The video will also be saved and shared through the Community Partnership School and United Way of Marion County’s Facebook pages for those unable to watch live.
College Park Elementary School is now Marion County's first Community Partnership School. The Community Partnership School™ model is based on a strategy of forming a long-term partnership among four core partners- a school district, a university or college, a community-based none-profit, and a healthcare provider as well as others. You can learn more about it here. This comprehensive model of a community school leverages the social and institutional capital of partners, making it possible for the school to offer resources and services that address the needs identified by the community. The goal is to remove barriers to learning and provide built-in support so students can achieve academic success and lifelong prosperity.
Scot Quintel, President/CEO of the United Way of Marion County, stated that “The community partnership model focuses on providing a multitude of services to students and families served by college park elementary. This two-generation poverty alleviation model helps children with their education as well as advancing the skills of the adults so their family can become more financially stable, have better access to healthcare and increase their educational attainment. We are proud to be involved with this project that brings together multiple partners from the community to work collaboratively to help those in need.”
The Community Partnership School focuses on school readiness, student academic success, physical social and emotional health and parent and community engagement. Doors will open before school, into the evening, and on weekends to provide safe spaces for participants to study, learn, live, connect and thrive. You can learn more via https://www.uwmc.org/community-partnership-school.