“Growing up in the Bronx to immigrant parents in a community that struggled, I got really lucky,” says Abe Fernández, vice president of collective impact and director of the National Center for Community Schools at Children’s Aid.
In fifth grade, Fernández was selected for Prep for Prep, a program that offers talented public-school students a scholarship to an independent school. Fernández describes the experience as “life changing.” But he adds, “There were another 29 kids in my class that didn’t get that shot, though. Is luck really the only path to opportunity? I hope not.”
Fernández is focused on changing kids’ odds by expanding the community school strategy. The National Center provides technical assistance to reimagine schools as holistic hubs of resources and support for families, beyond academics.
Funding for community school coordinators is at risk. “Our work is in many ways an equity strategy,” says Fernández. “It recognizes that if we want to see population-level change, we must get to know each and every kid in the school and recognize that some kids require more [to thrive]. To have the notion of equity be challenged really affects our work.”
Fernández will use the Fellowship to help quantify the impact of the organization’s capacity-building work. “I look forward to sharpening my tools in community with the other Fellows while continuing to position the National Center as a leader in community schools,” he says.