How growing Communities in Schools programming has impacted one SFPS family by Mo Charnot April 23, 2025 When Nisa Salas-Gallegos moved back to Santa Fe from El Paso, Texas, in the middle of her freshman year of high school, the change was, in her words, “horrible.” It was the spring of 2020, and as she…

Dear Community, Last week I was honored to join my fellow Communities In Schools executive directors and staff for CIS Hill Days, two days of advocacy, action and solidarity in Washington D.C. It was powerful to stand with my colleagues from across the nation, all of whom had come to the Hill to share stories…

The CIS Capital High School team took a group of around 30 students in 9-12th grade to explore the opportunities available at the Santa Fe Community College. We got to tour the greenhouse, the Automotive Shop, the dental and medical labs, video production studio, wood and machine shops, and culinary arts labs, just to name…

Where in the world is Yellow Ribbon? Last week, we were literally all over the state, simultaneously facilitating trainings up north in Chama and down south in Deming! Maria and Christina were honored to travel to Deming for the first time to facilitate a staff at Red Mountain Middle School, as well as a bilingual community training…

We had a book giveaway event at Gonzales Community School! We received the books from Friends of the Library. All of our students in grades K-8 got one book before testing. The students all really enjoyed getting to pick a book of their own – Kierra was excited to find a book about space, one of…

Since 2019 CIS has raised and distributed over $1,060,000 to prevent eviction or utility shut offs, keeping families in safe, stable homes so students can focus on learning. Here are some examples of our impact: Family Engagement  Family Stability 93% of school staff surveyed found CIS has a transformative or significant impact on enhancing parent,…

If you walk by the playground during 3rd-5th grade recess when I’m out there, you’ll likely hear at least 4 students ask, “Is there Boys Group this week?” Every Friday afternoon after early release from school, our group of 16-21 boys from 3rd-5th grade stick around for Boys Group. It’s a time to hang out,…

As the former Interim Director of the New Mexico Behavioral Health Services Division, Stanford Kemp was instrumental in establishing our Yellow Ribbon Suicide Prevention Program. Stanford passed away in December 2023. Someone once told me that there are friends that enter our lives for a reason, a season or a lifetime. Stanford Kemp was that…

The CISNM team at the RoundhouseBehavioral Health Day, February 26th, 2025 Behavioral health is a primary Area of Focus for CIS of New Mexico. Through the implementation of our evidence based CIS Integrated Student Support Model and our statewide Yellow Ribbon Suicide Prevention program, CISNM works hard to support the behavioral health of youth inside and outside the classroom. Last school year (2023-24), a total…

field trip to Early College Opportunities High School ECRA eighth-grade students took a tour of ECO! Myself, along with core teachers want to be able to provide next-step experiences and offer multiple high school options for students to get excited about while able to make educated decisions for the next four years of high school.…