Rancho Cucamonga, CA —The National League of Cities (NLC) has selected the City of Rancho Cucamonga as one of six cities to participate in the Mayors’ Institute on Advancing Education and Health through a Community Schools Strategy, taking place on May 2-4, 2017 in Philadelphia. In addition to Mayor L. Dennis Michael, mayors from Brooklyn Center, Minnesota; Caldwell, Idaho; Houston, Texas; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and Toledo, Ohio will participate in the Mayors’ Institute.

As part of its Culture of Health Initiative, NLC’s Institute for Youth, Education, and Families in partnership with the Coalition for Community Schools, and with generous funding from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, looks forward to Mayor L. Dennis Michael participating in this intensive problem-solving session with their peers, city teams and leading national experts that will help each city improve children’s health and education outcomes through a community schools strategy.

“We are grateful to be a part of this wonderful opportunity. This convening will allow us to share our innovative strategies to improve the health and wellness of our students and residents as well as provide an opportunity to learn from other cities across the country,” said Mayor Michael. “The City of Rancho Cucamonga and our Healthy RC initiative are using community schools strategies as a comprehensive approach to build an equitable culture of health and ensure all children in our city are healthy, ready to learn, and reach their full potential.”

The City of Rancho Cucamonga and its Healthy RC initiative, a successful City-community partnership since 2008, has taken a comprehensive approach to community health improvement. The community schools model has helped to transform and encourage schools as places where community-building happens, improving equitable access and availability of resources to all residents, and improving quality of life for all who live, learn, work, and play in the City.

Health barriers frequently prevent children and youth, particularly those from low-income households, from actively engaging in learning. Children who are regularly absent from school due to chronic health problems such as asthma miss essential learning time and quickly fall behind their peers. Children without access to healthy food or adequate and stable housing can also face daunting challenges in their attempts to succeed at school.

Joining Mayor Michael will be a representative from the Cucamonga School District and staff from the city’s Healthy RC program. Using public schools as hubs, community schools bring together many stakeholders to offer a range of supports and opportunities to children, youth, families and communities. From financial literacy to health and dental services, to hands on opportunities to explore career options in school and afterschool, the community schools approach draws heavily on community assets to better support students.

“The Community Schools strategy is a promising approach to ensure kids are healthy and ready to learn. It pulls together practical community resources to support children and ensure they can reach their full potential,” said NLC CEO and Executive Director Clarence E. Anthony. “We’re excited to bring together mayors and their teams to share promising practices and lessons from cities around the country.”

“I am honored that the National League of Cities chose Philadelphia to host this exciting event,” said Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney. “Community schools are a national movement because they address the needs of the whole child which ultimately helps more students succeed in and out of the classroom. I look forward to sharing what we’ve been able to accomplish so far in Philadelphia, while also learning best practices from other cities.”

Mayors and their city teams will spend their first two days in Philadelphia engaged in problem-solving sessions with their peers. On May 4, city teams will tour one of Philadelphia’s nine community schools.

For More Information – To learn more about the City of Rancho Cucamonga’s Healthy RC initiative or the Community Schools Strategy, please contact Michael Parmer, Management Analyst I at (909) 774-2046 or by email at Michael.Parmer@CityofRC.us.

The City of Rancho Cucamonga encompasses 40.1 square miles and is located 40 miles east of Los Angeles; considered to be the premier city in the Inland Empire, Rancho Cucamonga is one of the fastest growing metropolitan areas in Southern California with a current population of over 175,000 residents. Information regarding the City and the programs and services provided to the community can be found at www.CityofRC.us, via Facebook and Twitter @CityofRC.

For more information on NLC’s Culture of Health Initiative, click here.

The National League of Cities is dedicated to helping city leaders build better communities. NLC is a resource and advocate for 19,000 cities, towns and villages, representing more than 218 million Americans. The Institute for Youth, Education, and Families, a special entity within the National League of Cities, helps municipal leaders take action on behalf of the children, youth, and families in their communities.