Coordinator Message

Our Lead Partner, United Way of Salt Lake, in partnership with Davis School District, focuses our Center on "changing the odds" so every child has the same chance to succeed in school and in life. Together with a network of community partners, we are closing "the academic gap" between children growing up in disadvantaged situations and those that aren't using a collective impact model.

Our dedicated staff knows that sometimes you can't help a child without helping the whole family. The issues affecting each child vary in as many ways as there are children in our community (addiction, hunger, mental health, abuse, divorce, poverty, disabilities, etc.). Solutions to these issues are complex and can be unique to each child and each family situation. Most solutions are not a quick fix, but a lengthy journey to family stability. This is not a "one-size-fits-all" program. We have Family Support Specialists that work directly with students and their families to assess each family's individual needs and strengths. Immediate needs are addressed first utilizing community resources, followed by the development of long-term goals for family stability and success using the Five Protective Factors (an evidence based method).

Our on-site services include: support for families of children with disabilities (through Utah Parent Center), High School Diploma/GED completion courses, English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) classes, Head Start and Early Head Start Preschool programs, no-cost mental health services to students at selected Title 1 schools, and a basic needs Community Closet. 

We recognize that often times it takes a village to raise a child--we connect our local "village" of resources to schools so that our teachers can focus on what they do best--teach.