Community Schools
What are Community Schools?
Community Schools in British Columbia are elementary or secondary schools with a special emphasis upon the belief held by residents and staff in the value of community involvement. A Community School is an exciting approach to the integration of a local school with the neighbourhood that it serves. These schools strive to involve local residents in a variety of ways, by developing neighbourhood schools as hubs of community activities and services.
Community Education is an opportunity for local citizens and community schools, agencies and institutions to become active partners in addressing education and community concerns. It is an educational philosophy, which embraces the belief that education is a life long process.
The community education process brings community members together to identify and link community needs and resources in a manner that helps people to raise the quality of life in their communities.
Everyone in the community, individuals, business, public and private agencies, shares responsibilities for the mission of educating all members of the community.
Citizens have a right and a responsibility to be involved in determining community needs, identifying community resources and linking those needs and resources to improve their community.
Community Schools typically have a Community School Advisory Council, a body which consists of parents, community residents, staff and agency representatives. This council promotes free exchange of ideas, identifies local needs and participates in decision-making and feedback in areas of local concerns.
In the past few years in British Columbia, a variety of models have evolved from the traditional community school, but the original model of one school with one coordinator is still evident in many districts. In addition, there are district-wide “hub” models, municipal partnership models, and other new models are emerging. Some common characteristics of community schools include:
- Year round operation
- Provision of services beyond the regular education program
- Multi-ministry funding and partnerships with non-profits and businesses
- Integration and coordination of services
- Addressing the needs of all age groups, with programs for pre-school children, after school care, and adult education and recreation.
The BC Ministry of Education has been encouraging all schools in the province to become Neighbourhood Learning Centres, which reflect many of the characteristics of community schools. (For a detailed description of current models of community schools and Neighbourhood Learning Centres, please check the Resources and Links page on our web site for the document “Neighbourhood Learning Centres in British Columbia: Models, Elements and Stages of Development of Schools with Community Engagement.” )