IDEA

With a new school year underway, we’re proud to share the ninth edition of The Community Schools Chronicle, the first issue of our second volume.

This issue looks back at a summer of real learning, full plates, and plans for the fall. Community Schools at Lanier Jr./Sr. High School kept the doors open straight through the summer, supporting student learning, feeding the community, and laying groundwork for the year to come. It’s a story about what it looks like when a school decides to show up in every season.

Inside, you’ll find:

The Summer That Didn’t Stop — How Community Schools ran all summer at Lanier, serving thousands of free meals to the whole community, running STEAM and ACT prep enrichment, and turning what the summer taught into a plan for the year ahead.

The People Behind PLI — Meet three of the facilitators who make IDEA’s Parent Leadership Institute what it is — and find out how to join an upcoming cohort.

Care That Meets the Moment — A new trauma recovery and violence prevention program is joining Lanier this fall, with support from the Center for Hope.

The full Chronicle is linked below.

📬 Want to receive future editions directly in your inbox? Sign up here for The Community Schools Chronicle mailing list: https://bit.ly/TheChronicleEmailList

The Community Schools Chronicle is produced by IDEA in partnership with Jackson Public Schools and community partners across Mississippi. We’re telling the story as it unfolds. Thank you for being part of it.

The Summer That Didn't Stop — Issue 9 — The Community Schools Chronicle With a new school year underway, we're proud to share the ninth edition of The Community Schools Chronicle, the first issue of our second volume.

Our partner, a community gem🩷💙 Please consider supporting our friends at Servant Leaders as they continue to help shape the future of Jackson!

It takes a whole community to build a Community School.

Last school year, more than 19 partners, universities, churches, mentors, businesses, and neighbors across Jackson, brought programming and care into Lanier Jr Sr High School .

That's what's possible when a whole community shows up for one school.

From The Community Schools Chronicle, Issue 8: Nothing About Us Without Us.

Explore the full Chronicle collection:
https://democraticeducation.org/the-community-schools-chronicle/

The Community Schools Chronicle is a storytelling project by IDEA in partnership with Jackson Public Schools.

The 5th Annual Bob Moses Legacy Conference lands in Montgomery, Alabama this October 2 to 4, at the Equal Justice Initiative Legacy Sites. We're proud to help spread the word.

Register and learn more: bobmosesconference.com

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From Reflection to Strategy to Action

As the nation commemorates its 250th anniversary, the conference confronts a fundamental question: is a multiracial, caste-free America truly possible? Grounded in the enduring legacy of Bob Moses — who recognized that literacy is a prerequisite for economic and political participation — this gathering calls upon our generation to confront the truth of history as a necessary step toward transformative change.

During the conference, we also celebrate the 45th anniversary of the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation's Fellows Program (Moses was one of its first Fellows). MacArthur boldly invests in creative solutions to urgent challenges, sparking hope for our future. We, too, like the MacArthur Foundation, will be "Defying Boundaries" as we urgently step toward transformative change in our country's most urgent and neglected social issues.

The conference in Montgomery, a three-day experience, moves participants through a deliberate arc of education, connection, and activation — from a documentary screening to museum immersion to workshops and organizing commitments. In-person only. No live streaming.

Register and learn more: bobmosesconference.com

The work of Community Schools doesn't begin with systems. It begins with trust.

Trust built through consistency, presence, and shared responsibility. Before the programs, before the partnerships, before the structure, there are people choosing to show up for one another, again and again.

That's where it all starts in Jackson. And that's why it lasts.

From The Community Schools Chronicle, Issue 6: Community Is the Strategy.

Explore the full Chronicle collection:
https://democraticeducation.org/the-community-schools-chronicle/

The Community Schools Chronicle is a storytelling project by IDEA in partnership with Jackson Public Schools.

Applications are now open for IDEA’s Parent Leadership Institute (PLI), Cohort X.

PLI is a space for parents and community leaders connected to Jackson Public Schools who want to strengthen their leadership, deepen relationships, and support student success across our schools and neighborhoods.

If you are a JPS parent, grandparent, guardian, or community member who cares deeply about our children and our city, we encourage you to apply.

Apply here: https://bit.ly/apply-PLI-cohort-10

Learn more about IDEA's Parent Leadership Institute (PLI):
democraticeducation.org/parentleadershipinstitute

Parent Leadership Institute - IDEA The IDEA Parent Leadership Institute (PLI) of Jackson seeks to inspire parent and community leadership from all who are raising future generations of leaders. The Institute is designed to build key skills in everyday people who have a passion for advocating for all children.

Today we're lifting up the students getting ready for life after Lanier, through a partnership with Alcorn State University.

Throughout the last school year every Thursday at Lanier Jr Sr High School , a cohort of 20 students worked with Alcorn State to get ready for what comes next. They practiced resume writing, public speaking, and money management, and learned to navigate the choices ahead.

Through Pathways to Success, students leave with a clearer picture of the college and career choices in front of them, and a real plan for the life they want to build. The goal is simple: opening real doors.

To Alcorn State, and to every student in the cohort: we see you. Thank you.

From The Community Schools Chronicle, Issue 8: Nothing About Us Without Us.

Explore the full Chronicle collection:
https://democraticeducation.org/the-community-schools-chronicle/

Sign up here for The Community Schools Chronicle newsletter:
https://bit.ly/TheChronicleEmailList

The Community Schools Chronicle is a storytelling project by IDEA in partnership with Jackson Public Schools.

Purpose. Presence. Possibility.

Showing up consistently doesn't just change what's possible. It changes lives.

That's the heart of Community Schools in Jackson: the steady presence of people who keep showing up for students and families, week after week. Out of that consistency, new possibilities open up.

From The Community Schools Chronicle, Issue 2: Purpose. Presence. Possibility.

Explore the full Chronicle collection:
https://democraticeducation.org/the-community-schools-chronicle/

The Community Schools Chronicle is a storytelling project by IDEA in partnership with Jackson Public Schools.

Today we're lifting up the students earning real career credentials before they even cross the graduation stage at Lanier Jr Sr High School , through a partnership with Metro Booming Training Academy.

Right on campus, Lanier students train for skilled careers. Every certification is fully covered by scholarship, and the program is open to families and community members too – and the waiting list keeps growing.

Since the program began, 54 Lanier students have earned industry-recognized forklift certifications: real credentials they can carry straight into the workforce.

To Metro Booming, and to every student who put in the work: we see you. Thank you.

From The Community Schools Chronicle, Issue 8: Nothing About Us Without Us.

Explore the full Chronicle collection:
https://democraticeducation.org/the-community-schools-chronicle/

Sign up here for The Community Schools Chronicle newsletter:
https://bit.ly/TheChronicleEmailList

The Community Schools Chronicle is a storytelling project by IDEA in partnership with Jackson Public Schools.