Jeremiah: Building Connections in a New School Community
Jeremiah is a 7th grade student at Leland Middle School. He lives with his Mom and his brother. When Jeremiah moved to Brunswick County from Maryland early in 2024, his grandfather, with whom he was very close, had passed away and he was still grieving his loss.
Jeremiah’s Mom registered him for the CIS Action for Success Program in March 2024 when they first enrolled in the school. She felt like he might meet some new friends, and it might give him someone with whom he could talk. He began attending a CIS Lunch Bunch group and met a couple of other boys. The boys and their Success Coach, Mrs. Thompson, had fun playing games and talking while eating lunch. This helped to bring him out of his shell a little and he was able to meet some new people.
Last year Mrs. Thompson met with him regularly and also interacted with him during Lunch Bunch. At their meetings they talked about short -and -long- term goals, checked his grades and monitored his school attendance. This year he attended Math tutoring and Lunch Bunch as well as regular meetings with his Success Coach. Jeremiah also went on the UNCW field trip to explore the college campus and learn about a variety of future career options. He has already registered again for the Action for Success again next year when he begins 8th grade.
Jeremiah is much happier this year. He has assimilated well into the school community and made friends. He has really matured and talks a lot more. His Grandmother from Maryland comes to visit his family and he may go there this summer to visit her.
In reflecting on the CIS program Jeremiah shares, “This program helped me to pass the EOGs {End of Grade Tests} and this grade because Mrs. Thompson helped me set goals and discuss my grades and reminded me about missing work. Tutoring helped me understand what we were learning in math and how to solve, divide, and multiply. Lunch Bunch helped me find new friends and to play with my friends”.
The founder of the Communities in Schools national organization, Bill Milliken, has always held the belief that programs don’t change people, relationships do. The core of CIS programming is building a strong foundation with students, based on mutual respect, so additional building blocks focused on academics, behavior, attendance, emotional and social supports, and addressing other needs can follow, with impactful outcomes. CIS is happy Jeremiah is doing so well at Leland Middle School and Mrs. Thompson looks forward to continuing to work with Jeremiah in his 8th grade year, starting in August 2025. We are confident Jeremiah has a very bright future ahead thanks to his hard work, the support of his family, school, and Success Coach!
