What We Do

CIS of Durham encourages the use of research-based programs and collaborations to serve students and families. Students’ school failure is the result of multiple stressors, often from factors outside of the school.

Feed Hungry Kids – Weekend Backpack Program

Hungry children are a shocking reality in Durham. We send 50 children from impoverished families’ home with a food-filled backpack each Friday to bridge the weekend hunger gap so they can come to school Monday ready to learn. The Weekend Backpack Program is a partnership with the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina and Bayer CropScience.

Give Dropouts a Second Chance – Durham Performance Learning Center

Teens make mistakes and sometime need a second chance at success. The Durham Performance Learning Center, a non-traditional high school, offers a chance to turn academic failure into success for over 100 students who had dropped out or were at-risk of dropping out. The online curriculum and small class size allows students to learn at their own pace and accelerate their progress toward graduation. Students participate in internships and are matched with mentors. This school is a partnership with Durham Public Schools.

Reverse the Summer Reading Loss – Durham READS

Children from poor families lose an average of 2 months of reading every summer – undermining the hard work of teachers. Over half have no books at home. Durham READS, a research-based program, reverses the summer reading loss by mailing books every week of the summer to children who read at below grade level. The books are individually matched to a child’s reading level and interest areas. This is a partnership with MetaMetrics and Durham Public Schools.

Strengthen Families- The Incredible Years Program

Parents are the foundation of a child’s success in school. The Incredible Years program builds parenting skills through a fourteen-week class series which prevents long term problems like drug abuse, crime, and gang involvement. These skills are taught to parents of elementary school students, preventing problems before they become lifelong habits. This program has won numerous awards as one of the most effective according to research.

Kids Can't Learn If They are Hungry

“You don’t know what timing you have. I have two kids, one in elementary school and one in middle school, and I didn’t know how I was going to feed them. I only have 3 cans of food in the house and my food stamps weren’t coming in for 2 and a half weeks.” —parent of a child in the Weekend Backpack Food Program

CIS of Durham in the Schools

“Durham mall is site for center: Alternative school will see 100 teens”
-The News and Observer Feb. 24, 2007

Program Highlights

Our goal is to help Durham Public Schools reduce the annual dropout rate
by 50% in 5 years.

Durham’s Performance Learning Center — an innovative, nontraditional high school at Northgate Mall designed to help students graduate on time
Incredible Years Program — a research-based program helping children learn prosocial skills