Every School Partnership
An initiative of the ACTS Group
June Update
I hope this update finds you well! As schools wind down, elementary kids enjoy field days, 8th graders get promoted and 12th graders graduate, the ACTS Group is looking forward to a focused summer season of planning and resourcing churches who are engaging their local schools in partnership. I know that everyone receiving this newsletter loves and serves a local school in some way. On behalf of the ACTS Group, I would like to express my sincere gratitude for the work, sweat and energy you give away to young people and their families on a weekly basis. Your service does not go unnoticed and is helping strengthen the neighborhoods and communities that make up the Greater Sacramento region.
Happy end of the school year and thanks for serving your school well!
Megan McCleary
Director, Serve United
A strategic organization of The ACTS Group
The Film is In! Your School, Your Opportunity
These past few months, the ACTS Group has been able to partner with the non profit BeUndivided who chose Sacramento as one of three cities to provide training, resources and follow up care to churches interested in starting school partnerships in their neighborhoods. We have been so encouraged by the story of BeUndivided which began as a church in Portland that formed a long term relationship with a local school and resulted in a Documentary. Producer of this film, Jeff Martin, came down to Sacramento to create a short Sacramento film. We hope this film will encourage churches, school administrators, non-profits and business people in our region, and our nation, to see schools as a the strategic crossroads where we can find creative ways to meet needs and strengthen communities.
Please take the eight minutes to watch this film. It is well worth your time! And if you love it, share it with you friends, your pastor and your circles of influence.
Serve United Activation Team Meeting
Serve United hosted its first ever Serve United Activation Meeting on May 19th at Fremont Presbyterian Church. The purpose of these quarterly meetings is for representatives of participating churches and organizations to come together for vision alignment activation around the Every School Partnership initiative. In our meeting, we shared the vision of the Every School/Every Neighbor Initiative and a progress report on how churches are engaging with the diverse needs of families and communities through local schools. Representatives from the Sacramento Chaplaincy, BeUndivided and Kids Club Consultants shared about the unique expertise and resources they provide to church school partnerships. Pastor Curt Pearson from Crossroads Church in Carmichael shared the story of his church partnering with Carmichael Elementary. It was a wonderful time of connecting and learning!
Save the Date for our next meeting which will be on August 18th from 6:30-8:30. Please respond and invite others as the more detailed Eventbrite Invitation comes your way later in June.
Community Resource: Reading Partners
Reading Partners is a local non-profit that helps volunteers and community groups provide one-on-one literacy tutoring to struggling student readers. Several churches in our region have benefited through the expertise of Reading Partners to help kids succeed such as Bayside of South Sacramento, St. Anthony's Parish and the Pocket Area Churches Together (PACT).
Reading Partners currently working in these SCHOOLS. They are adding three additional schools next year:
HW Harkness - 2747 54th Ave. Sacramento
Michael J Castori - 1801 South Ave. Sacramento
Northwood - 2630 Taft St. Sacramento
If your church would like to partner with one of these schools or if you know of a church who may be interested, please reach out to Rachael Valler at rachael.valler@readingpartners.org