Celebrating CIS’ 40th Anniversary

For 40 years, Communities In Schools of Houston has been committed to removing the barriers so ALL children can succeed in school, graduate, and go on to achieve in life. From the very beginning, dedicated, forward-thinking people like the late Judge Wyatt and Heidi Heard, Billy Reagan, Mayor Louie Welch, Jill Shaw Binder, Bob Gower, the late Texas Governor Mark White and First Lady Linda Gale White, and current CEO and CIS’ first Project Manager, Cynthia Clay Briggs, set in motion a model of service that places a caring and capable adult on campus equipped with services and city-wide partners, who together endeavor to provide whatever it takes to help each student succeed.

Since 1979, CIS of Houston has grown from one site at M.C. Williams Middle School in the Acres Home community into the largest chapter in the state of Texas, serving over 145 schools in the Houston area, in addition to providing guidance and leadership to the other twenty-eight CIS programs statewide.

In the ever-changing landscape of social services and youth programs, CIS of Houston has been a steadfast leader for these forty years in the delivery of mental health, drop-out prevention and family support services. A key first responder in Houston schools after both Katrina and Harvey, CIS of Houston's history of success is based on a foundational belief in the power of relationships. No child can succeed without the support of caring adults. Likewise, CIS could not have successfully served over 119,000 students annually without the support of people like YOU who embrace the vision of helping students remove the roadblocks to graduation, college success and the pursuit of their American Dream.