TASBO Special Contributor Judy Marchman documented Waco ISD's "The Cove" project in the August edition of the TASBO Report. Here's the full story:
It may be difficult to believe, but more than 1.6 million young people experience homelessness every year and less than 25 percent of homeless students in Texas and across the nation graduate from high school. Many of these students face difficult, and often dangerous, barriers to receiving an education.
In Waco, over the last four years, an average of 1,200 students per year have been classified as homeless. And in the school year that ended in June, 97 high students were identified as unaccompanied homeless. This is the most vulnerable category—youth who are not in the physical custody of a parent or guardian. While Waco ISD provides on-campus case management for homeless students through its Homeless Outreach department, the need to help these students extends beyond regular school hours.
Cove board member Amy Jimenez with former Waco ISD homeless student Danny Tucker in the Cove’s living room.
That’s where the Cove comes in. A 501(c)(3) nonprofit, the Cove is a teen nurturing center—and a dream realized for Waco ISD Homeless Liaison Cheryl Pooler, who co-founded the organization with community volunteer Rosemary Townsend. The organization stands separate from Waco ISD.
Kathy Wigtil, the homeless student population specialist for Waco ISD and a Cove board member, said the organization came about from Pooler’s and her mutual experience in serving Waco’s students. They spent a couple of years examining The Nest, a similar program in Georgetown ISD. “They do things a little differently now than what we will be doing,” Wigtil said, “but it gave us a good picture of how our organization could work.”
Founded in January, the Cove officially opens its doors in September to provide a safe space for homeless students to access needed resources, case workers, and tutors to help them thrive and better prepare for their future. The 2,600 square-foot center will be open Monday through Thursday from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m., and students will have access to laundry facilities, showers, family-style dinners and healthy snacks, hair-cutting services, medical and counseling services, and SNAP/Medicaid outreach.
Initially, the Cove expects to serve between 30 and 40 students on a given evening. Through her role at Waco ISD, Wigtil identifies students in need of the Cove’s services, refers them to the center, and notifies the Cove’s case manager. The after-school time frame was chosen because it works best with students’ schedules as many have to work or have extracurricular activities, leaving weekends unavailable.
“To better serve these students, we work hand-in-hand with Waco ISD,” Townsend said. “In one example of the beautiful partnership we have, the district is sharing 70 laptops with us for the students to use and has made us a site for the district’s Wi-Fi system so students can meet with tutors here and login to their student accounts to access their homework.”
Through Waco ISD’s homeless student case management on campuses, Wigtil said the district has been successful with graduation rates of homeless high school seniors. “The average for the last four years has been 96 percent,” she said. “We will continue to improve on those rates with the extra case management we can do at the Cove.”
To grow these services and add new ones, the Cove is relying on community support in the form of volunteers, partnerships, and, of course, fundraising.
“We have two primary fundraising goals,” said Townsend, who is organization’s fundraising chair. “One is to raise $100,000 by August 15 and as of late July, we are at $74,000 and change. So, we’re not there yet but within striking distance.” The second goal is to raise $300,000 (including the first $100,000 goal) by the end of the year.
“These students are on the cusp of being successful,” Wigtil said, “but they need extra help. And we need to see what we can do to provide that.”
To learn more about the Cove, visit www.thecovewaco.org.