Community School Partnership

Assessment and Action Plan

BACKGROUND
This partnership tool was developed by Oakland Unified School District's (OUSD) Community
Partnerships Workgroup, a diverse committee of community based organizations (CBO), health and About this Tool
funder partners, and leadership from OUSD departments, including Family Schools and Community
Partnerships, Health Services, College and Career Readiness, and Adult Learning. The sources the Dynamic partnerships are at the heart of any
workgroup considered include: San Francisco Unified School District Partnership Tool, School community school or school health effort, yet
Partnership Tool (After School Knowledge Initiative, Oakland), the OUSD School Self-Assessment it is difficult to find the time and tools to build
Tool, and the Community Partner Self-Assessment Tool (OUSD Full Service Community Schools strong, aligned partnerships. This assessment,
Task Force). designed in the Oakland Unified School District
(OUSD), is an example of a tool used to help a
school and their partner define, assess, and
PURPOSE strengthen their partnership to ensure a
This assessment tool for partnerships includes a framework for establishing any partnership positive impact and sustainability.
between an Oakland Unified School or department, and a non-profit, public, or private partner, as
well as an action plan for continuously refining and strengthening this partnership. The assessment
can be incorporated into an existing meeting schedule, and is designed to support and facilitate the school’s annual planning cycle. It is also informed by
the school site plan.

This rubric helps define, assess, and strengthen a partnership, not an individual organization. It is not an assessment of the organization or school, nor
an evaluation of the program or the service being provided. The Partnership Assessment describes three categories of partnership, all of which are valued
by OUSD:
Specialized Partnership/Aligned Partnership/Core Partnership. This tool is designed to:
1. Help a school and a new partner determine the type of partnership they want to build. It can be used to establish expectations around goals,
target populations, communications, meetings, reports, etc.
2. Help a school and their existing partners define the category of partnership they have and the type they want to have moving forward.
3. Clarify expectations and regularly assess the state of the partnership by identifying strengths, areas for improvement, and ways to progress
toward meeting goals.

Center of Healthy Schools and Communities | School Health Works 1

How to Use:
1. School leadership (usually the community school manager but it could be a lead agency or principal) and partner leadership (site manager or
director) use the FSCS Partnership Assessment together to rate each indicator for their partnership category with one of the following:
 Not Applicable (NA): Partnership is not implementing this practice at this time.
 Emerging (E): Partnership is implementing this practice, though inconsistently.
 Developing (D): Partnership is implementing elements of this practice consistently, with evidence of developing an effective collaboration.
 Sustaining (S): Partnership implements the practice consistently; it has been an important factor in establishing strong and effective
collaboration.

2. After completing the assessment, the partner and school leadership will use it to create an Action Plan, which will help them to define and
target specific action items to work on to improve and strengthen their partnership. The action steps they choose can help them either
strengthen their existing partnership or transition the partnership to another category. When considering a change of partnership type, both
entities need to consider issues such as partner capacity, school management capacity, resources, and the strength of alignment. OUSD
recognizes that core partnerships are less common and may not be present at every school site.

3. Partners and school leadership will incorporate this assessment into their regular meetings. It will be used early in the school year to set
partnership expectations and create an action plan. Later in the year, it will be used to reassess the partnership and revise the action plan for the
following year.

Partnership Action Plan for: ___________________________________ (school & partner)

1. Current partnership category (circle one): Specialized Aligned Core

2. Are you currently at your desired category of partnership – agreed upon by CBO and school? Yes No

3. If yes, what steps can be taken to strengthen the partnership at the current level? (complete Action Steps below)

4. If no, what is your desired category of partnership (circle one): Specialized Aligned Core

5. Identify next steps below for either strengthening the current partnership OR transitioning the partnership to the desired
category.

2 Community School Partnership Assessment and Action Plan | School Health Works
 Action Steps Who else is involved? What is our timeline?

1.

2.

3.

4.

We will review this plan at our next meeting to assess our progress. Our next meeting will be: _____________________________

Center of Healthy Schools and Communities | School Health Works 3

 Full Service Community School Partnership Assessment for: ___________________________________
(school and partner)

GOAL AREA: SHARED LEADERSHIP

Rate each indicator in your partnership category as Not Applicable (NA), Emerging (E), Developing (D), or Sustaining (S).

CRITERIA Specialized Partnership Aligned Partnership Core Partnership

□ Partner and school can identify one or □ Partner and site leadership discuss □ Partner and site leadership co-
Alignment of
vision and goals more partner goals aligned with school site vision and goals with construct a shared site vision and
vision opportunities for partner input goals. Both are accountable for
during site planning process implementation
□ Partner and site can identify at least □ Both parties are responsible for
one partner outcome aligned with a ensuring the alignment of other
strategic priority of the school site partners to the shared vision and
plan (CSSSP) goals
□ Partner and site can identify how the □ Partner and site leadership identify □ Partner engages in the school and
Engagement in
partner is addressing the needs of the and fine-tune strategies for meeting community dialogue as part of the
needs assessment
community the needs of the school community needs assessment for the site
□ Partner and school advise other
partners about fine-tuning
strategies to meet the needs of
the school community
□ Desired outcomes for program/service □ Partner and site discuss school □ Partner and site together review
Engagement in
set by partner or principal priorities and program plans with and set priorities and desired
program planning
□ Partner program/service is aligned to opportunities for partner input outcomes
and priority
during the planning process □ Partner and site leadership ensure
setting the district and state standards
□ Partner and site leadership can that the agency outcomes are
identify at least one partner aligned with all strategic priority
outcome aligned with a strategic
areas of the school site plan
priority of the school site plan
(CSSSP) (CSSSP)
□ Site and partner have discussed site □ Partner regularly provides feedback □ Partner leads or co-leads a cross-
Participation in
decision-making processes and bodies to the school leadership agency school leadership body
site decision-
and identified opportunities for input body/committee (COST, CSSSP, etc.)
making processes
□ Site and partner decide on the level and
frequency of participation in a site
decision-making body

4 Community School Partnership Assessment and Action Plan | School Health Works
 Full Service Community School Partnership Assessment for: ___________________________________
(school and partner)
GOAL AREA: COLLABORATIVE, RESPONSIVE IMPLEMENTATION
Rate each indicator in your partnership category as Not Applicable (NA), Emerging (E), Developing (D), or Sustaining (S).
CRITERIA Specialized Partnership
□ School provides basic
Using data and an
information about
equity lens to identify
participants and school-wide
community needs and
trends
disparities
□ Partner collects and
provides general
participation data
□ Partner has a set program
Responsiveness to
based on their expertise and
school community
the school’s identified needs
needs and disparities
Center of Healthy Schools and Communities | School Health Works
Aligned Partnership
□ School provides data about participants
and school-wide trends and disparities
□ Partner collects and provides a
breakdown of their data to support the
identification of needs and disparities
□ Site and partner leadership meet at
least twice per year to discuss
participation and assessment data
□ Partner and school leadership meet at
least twice a year to discuss program(s)
□ Partner incorporates feedback on
unmet needs into the program planning
for the following year (or after each
meeting if possible)
□ If the program is not reaching its target
populations – and there is still capacity
– the partner and the school will
conduct a targeted outreach to address
the disparity
Core Partnership
□ Partner collects, analyzes, and
provides their participation and
assessment data according to
relevant categories
□ School includes partner on teams
where data trends are being
discussed on a regular basis, e.g.
school leadership team, school
climate, etc., in part to identify
needs and disparities
□ Partner and school leadership meet
at least monthly (as part of a larger
group) to discuss program(s)
□ School and partner discuss how to
make adjustments and/or create
new programs to address unmet
needs throughout the year
5
 GOAL AREA: COLLABORATIVE, RESPONSIVE IMPLEMENTATION
Rate each indicator in your partnership category as Not Applicable (NA), Emerging (E), Developing (D), or Sustaining (S).

CRITERIA Specialized Partnership Aligned Partnership Core Partnership

□ Strong communication at
Use of communication
the beginning of a
systems and structures partnership to establish
expectations for the partner
and the school
□ Strong communication at
end of an
event/program/activity to
evaluate the impact of the
program and share data
□ Ongoing communication, as
needed
□ School and partner are
Involvement in site
aware of appropriate site
planning and
engagement opportunities;
implementation
partner participation is
structures (COST,
optional but welcome
school climate,
attendance, etc.)
□ Partner and school leadership meet at
least twice a year
□ School and partner share and
contribute to each other’s
communications, e.g., newsletters,
flyers, brochures, events
□ School and partner have explicit
agreements regarding communication,
e.g., respond to each other within 24
hours, preferred method and style
□ School involves partner in core and
program-relevant committees quarterly
□ Partner and school leadership have a
set monthly meeting
□ School and partner share and
contribute to each other’s
communications, e.g., newsletters,
flyers, brochures
□ School and partner make explicit
agreements about communication,
e.g., preferred method, style,
frequency
□ School and partner have an
identified process for conflict
resolution and problem-solving
□ Partner is part of core school
groups, including staff, cost, and
partner meetings
□ Partner joins program-relevant
committees at least quarterly, e.g.,
grade level teams, PTA

6 Community School Partnership Assessment and Action Plan | School Health Works
 Full Service Community School Partnership Assessment for: ___________________________________
(school and partner)

GOAL AREA: SHARED ACCOUNTABILITY FOR SUCCESS

Rate each indicator in your partnership category as Not Applicable (NA), Emerging (E), Developing (D), or Sustaining (S).

CRITERIA Specialized Partnership Aligned Partnership Core Partnership

□ Site leadership and partner agree □ Site leadership and partner agree □ Partner and site strategies are
Outcomes
alignment: there is a need at the site for on the role of the partner in complementary and coordinated to
Individual partner's programs or services impacting the identified outcomes impact the top priorities or needs
contribution to or the needs of the site of the site
collective impact □ Site leadership and partner plan
strategies for impacting outcomes
□ Partner and site collect and share □ Site shares baseline and “target” □ Partner has access to all relevant
Employment of
data-driven relevant participation and outcome data with partners data concerning student and family
decision making data for the services or programs □ Partners and site share student outcomes and can collect and
provided outcome information analyze that data in real time
□ Data is available by request from □ Partner and site identify necessary
the site or partner as it pertains to data to track for agreed upon site
the needs or outcomes and the priorities
services provided
□ Site leadership and partner meet □ Site leadership and partner meet □ Site and partner review data about
Engagement in
continuous after program/service to review twice per year to review data about priority student and family
improvement and suggest changes for the next priority student and family outcomes every two months to
efforts visit outcomes and fine tune strategies fine tune strategies for all partners
together linked to the outcome(s)
□ Bilateral provision of resources □ Partner and site access resources □ Site and partner plan together at
Leveraging
resources between the site and the partner together to support identified site least twice per year for resource
□ Resources are applied to the needs priorities development and sustainability
of the general district or site □ Partner and site agree on alignment □ Site and partner together
of resources to address identified coordinate resources upon
priorities implementation

Center of Healthy Schools and Communities | School Health Works 7