By Zach Vander Veen
Part Three: Data Is Crucial
Effective Community Schools depend on robust data systems and clear protocols to ensure access to relevant individual and aggregate information and to make decision-making transparent. The standards developed by the Institute for Educational Leadership outline practical expectations for data use in Community Schools. In practice, this means:
- The school uses a centralized data system, and all staff and community partners receive training to use it effectively.
- The Community School Coordinator and partner organizations have appropriate access to school data, including student-level information when permitted.
- Student- and school-level data reports are routinely reviewed by Site-Based Leadership Teams and interdisciplinary teams to guide action.
- Clear policies and procedures are in place to protect student and family confidentiality.
- Data sharing and use agreements comply with applicable legal requirements.
- Students and families provide consent via data release forms where required.
- The school handbook explains how data are used and shared with families and students.
Interdisciplinary teams—supported by the Community School Coordinator—use data to prioritize resources and craft individualized plans so every student receives the opportunities and supports they need. This includes:
- Regularly scheduled team meetings that include data review on every agenda.
- Differentiated responses based on data, such as tiered interventions or multi-tiered systems of support (MTSS).
Formal agreements to share student data and information about services should exist among school staff, community school coordinators, and community partners. The site leadership team should analyze individual student records, participant feedback, and aggregate outcomes on a regular basis to assess program quality, measure progress, and identify strategies for improvement.
When a community school coordinates with hundreds of partners, the ability to quickly assess partner impact is essential. Centralizing partner data saves time and helps avoid the inefficiencies of manually compiling siloed information. A unified system lets staff and partners see the real-time effects of programs and better align efforts with student needs.
With family permission, community partners can access important elements of a student profile—such as learning inventories, academic records, behavior indicators, portfolios, and individualized education plans. That comprehensive, current view enables partners to design programs that engage students and address their specific needs.
A primary aim of community partnerships is to develop students’ skills so they succeed in and beyond school. When schools can link partner program participation to student outcomes, they can allocate resources more strategically and amplify the impact on student success.
Supporting the “Whole Child”
Sara Sneed, President of the NEA Foundation, describes Community Schools as a model where educators, families, students, and partner organizations collaborate to provide broad, coordinated supports that improve educational experiences and outcomes. Today there are more than 5,000 Community Schools in the United States—roughly five percent of public schools—so the model is growing but still far from universal.
States such as California are making significant investments to expand Community Schools, launching multiyear efforts to transform large numbers of schools. Community Schools are defined in California law as public schools with strong, intentional community partnerships that support student learning and whole child and family development. Even as adoption grows, there remains a large opportunity for more schools to embrace this model.
Supporting the whole child means more than collecting data or offering trauma-informed and social services. It requires functional systems that measure whether partnerships are delivering the intended supports and whether students are actually benefiting. When organized well, data management makes it possible to monitor social, emotional, and academic health and to act proactively to meet students’ needs.
Implementing data systems that track multiple dimensions of a child’s experience can feel daunting, but practical platforms and clear protocols make the work manageable. To run an effective Community School or district, here are questions leaders should ask and answer using data:
- Which partners or programs are performing best? Identify programs with the highest sign-ups, engagement, and retention so resources can be invested wisely and lower-performing programs can be supported.
- Which types of partners do we need more of? Match partner capacity to school priorities—such as social-emotional learning or mental health—so offerings align with annual goals.
- How can partners increase student success in their programs? Use participant-level data to discover what drives engagement or what barriers exist, and then refine program design and delivery.
- How can we boost family engagement? Family involvement correlates with better student outcomes; data helps identify outreach strategies that work for different communities.
- Which programs lead to higher student success? Linking program participation to outcome metrics supports smarter resource allocation and greater return on investment for students.
Once compiled, data should be presented to stakeholders in clear, accessible formats to guide decisions about which supports and actions to implement. Data-driven connections between students and community partners help address social, emotional, and academic needs in targeted ways. Data also ensures that efforts are inclusive and culturally responsive, supporting restorative practices rather than exclusionary discipline and fostering students’ sense of purpose, belonging, and agency.
A digital partner catalog simplifies management of extended learning opportunities by organizing partner information, tracking student connections, and visualizing the areas where partners have the most impact. This transparency helps school leaders maintain alignment between programs, student needs, and school goals.
In Part Four, we’ll look at how to bring all the pieces together and make this approach sustainable and actionable.
About the author
Zach Vander Veen has served as a history teacher, technology coach, school administrator, and director of technology. He enjoys learning, teaching, traveling, and family adventures. He is co-founder and Senior Vice President of Innovation and Outcomes at Abre.io, an education management platform.