A communities in schools DOCUMENTARY

CIS: the PUSH

Directed by

RISING ACT

Ja-Mez is about to graduate with his class at Stone Mountain High School – an event that seemed impossible just two years earlier. A childhood tragedy that left him angry and disaffected threatened to derail his life until he came under the wing of Darrell Smith, a caring, empathetic CIS site coordinator working in the school.

ABOUT CIS: Founder Bill Milliken began CIS in New York City in the 1970’s. He came up with the idea of bringing community resources inside public schools—where they are accessible, coordinated and accountable.

“It’s relationships, not programs, that change children,” Bill once said. “A great program simply creates the environment for healthy relationships to form between adults and children. Young people thrive when adults care about them on a one-to-one level, and when they also have a sense of belonging to a caring community.”