24 Students
referred
through CARE 425
Youth benefited
from the SPBCSI
Health &
Wellness
Working with the CARE team, the Beacon Director continued to support students despite the ongoing lack of a case manager . They also focused on promoting staff wellness and health through events such as a teacher appreciation week in the winter and a luncheon in the spring.
Family
Engagement
The Beacon Director organized various activities to welcome families back on campus. They coordinated events, such as a family game night and movie night, which had not been offered in previous years. They also engaged in professional development opportunities to increase their family engagement capacity.
School
Culture &
Climate
The Beacon Director led several events to promote a positive school culture and climate, such as a Ruby Bridges Walk and a read -in. They greeted students and families every morning in front of the school during drop -off. In addition, t hey partnered with an external consultant to identify and explore ways to improve the school’s culture and climate.
E.M. Downer Elementary School
2022-23 School Profile
Lead Agency: Bay Area Community Resources (BACR)
100%
of youth surveyed
feel safe in their
program
100%
of youth say they
learn how to make
goals
100%
of youth report
they try harder in
school
SAN PABLO BEACON COMMUNITY
SCHOOLS INITIATIVE
San Pablo Beacon Community Schools Initiative Page 2
E.M. Downer Elementary School Profile
City Investments
Each San Pablo school worked with a lead agency.
The City granted each lead agency staffing and
program funding to support the overall
implementation of the San Pablo Beacon Community
Schools Initiative at that school site.
Staffing
Beacon Director
The Beacon Director provided leadership and implementation of the San Pablo Beacon Community Schools strategy at E.M. Downer.
1 Full-time position
Grant Strategy: Coordination of Community Schools
Agency: Bay Area Community Resources (BACR)
Programs
Student Ambassadors1
The ambassadors support the planning and implementation of school wide activities planning and implementation.
Grant Strategy: Youth Development & Leadership
Agency: Bay Area Community Resources (BACR)
“I like how by us just participating in this club we help our school and plan fun things for our school.” — E.M. Downer student
“I like this program because I have fun, learn new things and everyone in the program is very kind to me and I like that.” — E.M. Downer student
1 The Student Ambassadors program did not have updated student attendance for 2022-2023.
San Pablo Beacon Community Schools Initiative Page 3
E.M. Downer Elementary School Profile
Events
The Beacon Director organized a variety of events throughout the school year to improve school culture and climate and engage with parents and families.
8 Events
271
Average
Student Attendance*
14 Average
Family Attendance*
Sample of 2022-23 E. M. Downer Events
Ruby Bridges Walk Student Ambassadors read a book about Ruby Bridges as students by grade level were invited by grade level to walk out and around the school in an organized parade style. When the grades completed the walk, they received Ruby Bridges swag donated by AAA, the sponsor of the event.
AAPAC student
certificate / read -
in
A read -in that highlighted Black student excellence. The students had a continental breakfast, participated in a certificate ceremony, and received a package of books to promote summer reading.
Cupid Run The Cupid Run was a movement activity that encouraged students to exercise, build relationships with their peers, and engage in healthy eating.
Family Movie
Night
Families were invited to watch "Coco" during a week -long celebration of Dia de Los Muertos. The event included healthy concession snacks and a brief parent update.
Source: Cityspan Events data, June 2023. *Averages calculated across events that provided attendance data.
San Pablo Beacon Community Schools Initiative Page 4
E.M. Downer Elementary School Profile
Youth Outcomes
San Pablo Beacon Community Schools Initiative programs are rooted in positive youth development practice. Youth survey data suggest programs are helping youth build personal and social competencies.
Figure 1: Youth felt empowered and supported.
Figure 2: Youth developed social competencies.
Figure 3: Youth demonstrated commitment to learning.
Source: Youth Surveys (N=6), 2022-23. Surveys are from programs directly funded by the SPBCSI or led by a Beacon Director.
This represents a subset of the total programs offered at the school. 83%
100%
100%
100%
In this program I can go to an adult for advice.
In this program I feel safe.
In this program the adults care about me.
I like this program.
100%
100%
100%
100%
Because of this program, I learn how to make goals.
This program has helped me stay away from fights.
In this program I learn how to work out my problems.
This program has helped me to say “no” to things I know are wrong.
100%
100%
100%
100%
This program has helped me to try harder in school.
This program has helped me to like school more.
This program has helped me to care more about my school.
This program has helped me to pay attention in class more.
San Pablo Beacon Community Schools Initiative Page 5
E.M. Downer Elementary School Profile
Community Schools Coordination
For the 2022-23 school year, San Pablo schools focused on implementing the San Pablo Beacon Community Schools Initiative priorities focused on health and wellness, family engagement, and school culture and llimate. In this section, we summarize findings drawn from interviews with the school’s Principal, Beacon Director, and lead agency supervisor as well as documents provided by the City of San Pablo.
At E.M. Downer, students, family, and staff experienced challenges due to insufficient on- campus mental health services and the departure of the Principal. Because of this, the Beacon Director handled the CARE team coordination solely while the new Principal was being onboarded. Despite these challenges, the Beacon Director and staff found ways to support students and create community. For example, an intern from the University of California, Berkeley’s Public Service Center supported the Beacon Director to collect data to strengthen Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS) interventions in the school.
Health and Wellness
"Everything runs through the Beacon Director and the CARE team if students need to be supported. It could be for anything--attendance, academics, social emotional, trauma, wellness checks." — Principal The Beacon Director met biweekly with the Crisis
Assessment and Referral Evaluation (CARE) team to
connect students to appropriate resources offered by local service providers . They worked closely with the school psychologist, counselor, and therapist to ensure that
students’ needs were prioritized and supported through a consistent referral process. During meetings, t he Beacon Director facilitated conversations to 1) identify impactful practices and strategies that benefit students and 2)
brainstorm ways to address team member transitions and
prepare for potential changes the following school year.
The Beacon Director also coordinated and managed six
separate community partnerships that delivered services on campus. They oversaw the partners’ onboarding,
supervised on-site staff, and ensured that all engagements aligned with E.M. Downer’s focus on health and wellness. In addition, they organized two fields days that encouraged physical activity and relationship building and a Cupid Run that addressed healthy eating, as well as exercising.
San Pablo Beacon Community Schools Initiative Page 6
E.M. Downer Elementary School Profile
Figure 4: CARE referrals
Students referred
◼◼◼◼◼◼◼◼◼◼
School overall
◼◼◼◼◼◼◼◼◼◼
26 referrals for
24 unduplicated students
8 out of 10 (88%) students referred were
Latinx.
Academic Needs referrals
were most common.
6% of the student
population was referred.
Most students referred were in
Kindergarten.
Nearly 6 out of 10 students referred were
female.
Sources: Cityspan Crisis Assessment and Referral Evaluation (CARE) data, July 2023; CDE, DataQuest 2022-23 Enrollment Data, accessed July 2023.
Family Engagement
“The Beacon Director is great about reaching out to all families and making sure that they follow up with the ones that don’t come to events.”— Principal
Based on feedback from the previous school year, the
Beacon Director planned two new family engagement
activities: Family Movie Night and Family Game
Night. For the Family Movie Night, parents,
caregivers, and students brought sleeping bags and
blankets to watch a movie in the school gymnasium .
For the Family Game Night, families enjoyed board
games, card games, and other activities organized by
the Beacon Director with the help of Leadership
students. Both nights were well received and greatly
appreciated. Students and families communicated
their excitement to participate in other family
activities held on campus.
The Beacon Director, with the support of the School Community Outreach Worker (SCOW) coordinated a variety of giveaways sponsored by the City of San Pablo, which included clothing, backpacks, gift cards, and Christmas gifts. Families and students appreciated these items. 5%
5%
15%
75%
Social
Health
Emotional
Academic
6%
25% 21% 17% 21%
8% 4% 4%
K 1 2 3 4 5 6
Students referred School overall
63%
51%
38%
49%
Students
referred
School
overall
San Pablo Beacon Community Schools Initiative Page 7
E.M. Downer Elementary School Profile
Committed to learning from families, the Beacon Director developed and implemented a needs and assets assessment for parents and caregivers to offer their input. They hoped to learn more about families’ experiences and ways to increase their engagement by offering meaningful and interesting opportunities.
School Culture and Climate
“This year I put in a lot of effort to gather and analyze data from all the different stakeholders within our school community. I conducted surveys to get a sense of how connected they are to our school community.” — Beacon Director
The Beacon Director’s efforts to listen to the needs and interests of all community school members helped them deliver activities that created a welcoming environment. They continued to organize events that celebrated the diverse student population . For the Family Movie Night, the Beacon Director showed “Coco” during Día de Los Muertos in the fall. They held a read-in that introduced students to African American literature and poetry , teaching them about the story of the first African American child who attended a formerly segregated school as they participated in the Ruby Bridges Walk. The Beacon Director ensured that these activities not only exposed students to different cultures an d backgrounds but also promoted
student academic growth and wellness by engaging them
in reading, healthy habits, and physical activity.
As a member of the Culture and Climate committee, they
collaborated with staff to communicate and reinforce
shared school norms about kindness towards others
throughout the school. There were posters in common
spaces, such as the hallways, cafeteria, and playground to model respectful conduct and behavior. The Beacon
Director also worked closely with Student Ambassadors
to plan events that support ed the school culture and
climate, such as the end-of-year Olympic Field Day. They also hosted a lunch to show t heir appreciation for the Student Ambassadors and promote three new
Ambassadors for the following school year.
Lessons Learned
At the close of the interviews, the Principal and Beacon Director reflected on their experiences from the past year.
• “As a community school, it's important to show that the school can have events at night, especially for families who are working all day and don't really have a chance to
San Pablo Beacon Community Schools Initiative Page 8
E.M. Downer Elementary School Profile
come into the school during the day. They can be with their kids in the school and feel like they're part of the school community.” – Principal • “It was really important to me to get a comprehensive picture of our school community this year . I feel like we made some great progress in understanding how we can better support everyone involved.” – Beacon Director
Plans for Next Year
The Principal and Beacon Director also took time to share their plans for the coming school year. • Increase teacher and staff participation in community school planning and implementation.
• Provide more timely communication about events to accommodate families’ busy schedules.
“My primary focus is on ensuring
that parents and students feel
connected to our school
community and remain informed
about the latest happenings. To
achieve this goal, I plan to
organize more events that allow
parents to be a part of the school
community and elevate their
voices.” — Beacon
Director