communities in schools houston

What communities in schools houston does

Communities In Schools of Houston (CIS of Houston) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 1979 that delivers school-based integrated student support services to at-risk K-12 and college students across the Greater Houston area. Its core operating model places full-time Student Support Specialists directly inside partner school campuses, where they develop individualized support plans, deliver counseling and crisis intervention, connect students and families to community resources (food, clothing, housing, healthcare), and provide academic and college-readiness coaching. The organization does not operate a proprietary technology platform; service delivery is staff-mediated, with student tracking conducted through a Catalyst data-entry system.

As of the 2022-2023 school year, CIS of Houston served 174,256 students on 173 campuses across six school districts — Houston ISD, Spring Branch ISD, Alief ISD, Aldine ISD, Fort Bend ISD, and Lone Star College — making it one of the largest affiliates of the national Communities In Schools network. Specialized programmatic lines include the Mental Health Initiative (licensed counselors and a Mobile Mental Health Team, positioning CIS as the largest school-based mental health provider in Harris County), the College Initiative, the Dental Care Program (Project MOVE, in partnership with UT School of Dentistry), the HBA/CIS Summer Legal Internship Program, the Wellness on Wheels program, and the Ready, Set, Learn Back-to-School Tour.

CIS of Houston is funded almost entirely through philanthropy and government partnership rather than fee-for-service revenue: individual donations, foundation grants (including a $13 million MacKenzie Scott gift in February 2022 — the largest in the organization's history), corporate sponsorships (30+ major Houston companies including ExxonMobil, Shell, Halliburton, BP/Enbridge, Chevron Phillips Chemical, Phillips 66, Valero, Baker Hughes, Bank of America, Memorial Hermann, UnitedHealthcare, H-E-B, and others), annual galas, and direct school-district investments (notably a $4 million HISD commitment over four years through a U.S. Department of Education Teacher and School Leader Incentive Grant). Services are delivered at no cost to students or families. Outcome data, validated by a Harvard-Cornell study, shows a 5.2 percentage-point increase in graduation rates and a $2.36 return per dollar invested for students with three years of CIS exposure.

Name

communities in schools houston

Legal name

Communities In Schools of Houston

Website

https://cishouston.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1979

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Communities In Schools of Houston is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that places full-time Student Support Specialists inside partner schools across six Houston-area districts, delivering counseling, mental health, and wraparound services to 174,000+ at-risk K-12 and college students, funded by donations, foundation grants, and corporate sponsorships.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Youth and Education Support Services

NAICS

Other Individual and Family Services (624190), Educational Support Services (6117), Educational Support Services (61171)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Health Services (8000), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Public Student Support & Related Services (Counseling, SEL, Health, Safety) (EDAJAAAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Mental Health Counseling & Therapy Services (K–12) (EDAJALAG), School Counseling & Guidance Services (Academic/Social-Emotional) (EDAJALAF), School Counseling Services (Individual & Group) (EDAKAMAB), Family & Parent Support Services (Parent Coaching, Advocacy) (EDAJALAK)

Keywords

• School-based student support
• Integrated student supports
• School mental health services
• Youth mentoring programs
• College and career readiness

Headquarters

HQ city

Houston

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Individual Donations: Tax-deductible gifts from individuals supporting student programs. Donation tiers range from $100 to $2,500 for specific program support.
2. Foundation Grants: Major grants from foundations including $13 million from MacKenzie Scott, $50,000 from H-E-B, $10,560 from Texas Bar Foundation, and funding from John S. Dunn Foundation, Brown Foundation, and others.
3. Corporate Sponsorships & Galas: Annual fundraising events including galas raising significant amounts ($850,000 in 2024, $628,000 in 2025, $550,000 in 2020). Corporate sponsors listed include major Houston companies.
4. School District Investment: HISD investing $4 million over four years through Teacher and School Leader Incentive Grant from U.S. Department of Education to expand CIS wraparound services.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Communities In Schools of Houston places full-time Student Support Specialists on school campuses across Greater Houston to deliver integrated student supports including academic assistance, social-emotional counseling, mental health services, basic-needs provision, college and career preparation, and family support services. All services are provided at no cost to students, families, or schools, and are delivered directly on K-12 and college campuses across six school districts.

Product overview

Communities In Schools of Houston operates as a single, unified nonprofit service model rather than a technology platform. The core offering is integrated student supports delivered through full-time Student Support Specialists embedded on school campuses across Greater Houston. The organization provides a portfolio of programs including the Mental Health Initiative (licensed counselors and Mobile Mental Health Team), College Initiative, Dental Care Program (Project MOVE), Summer Internships, and volunteer programs (Rise Together Mentorship, Story Stars Reading, Kind Words Bright Futures). These programs work together to surround students with community support, helping them stay in school and achieve academically and beyond.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Mental Health Initiative: School-based mental health support program providing licensed mental health counselors, mobile mental health teams, and specialist services for students.

Products and services

• Integrated Student Supports Core CIS program model placing full-time Student Support Specialists on school campuses to deliver academic, social-emotional, and basic-needs support to at-risk K-12 students at no cost.
• Mental Health Initiative School-based mental health services including licensed counselors, Mobile Mental Health Team, crisis support, and specialist services for trauma, substance abuse, and bereavement. The largest provider of school-based mental health support in Harris County.
• College Initiative Support services to help students transition to and succeed in college, including assistance with applications, financial aid, and persistence through higher education.
• Dental Care Program (Project MOVE) Mobile dental clinic providing preventive and restorative dental care and oral health presentations to elementary school students through partnership with UT School of Dentistry.
• HBA/CIS Summer Legal Internship Program Eight-week job readiness program placing academically outstanding high school students in paid internships with law firms, corporate legal departments, and public agencies, in partnership with the Houston Bar Association since 2009.
• Ready, Set, Learn Back-to-School Program Back-to-school tour providing school supplies, resources, and community support to students at the start of the school year, conducted in partnership with national sponsors including Whataburger, H-E-B, and Soles4Souls.
• Wellness on Wheels (WOW) Program Mobile wellness program providing bikes and wellness resources to students at partner high schools, including Milby High School and Gallegos Elementary School.
• Rise Together Mentorship Program One-on-one mentoring program pairing volunteers with students to support academic success, career exploration, and personal development.

Quantifiable outcome

• 98% of CIS students stay in school
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Comp-U-DoptcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnered to distribute 5,000 computers to students needing devices for virtual school during COVID-19 pandemic.
• Houston Food BankcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMobile Pantry brings fresh produce to campuses; Backpack Buddies provides weekend food; School Market serves families; Nutrition Education classes provided.
• Houston Furniture BankminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerProvides beds and furniture to CIS student families - helping 200 Houston-area families ensure students have proper sleep conditions for academic success.
• Baker BottscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHonored for 30 years and thousands of hours of pro bono legal support to CIS. Long-term partnership providing legal internship placements.
• Houston Bar AssociationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership since 2009 for HBA/CIS Summer Legal Internship Program placing high school students in paid law internships.
• VSP Eyes of HopeminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnered to provide free eye exams and prescription glasses to students in Alief and Royal ISD.
• Soles4SoulsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner for Ready, Set, Learn Back-to-School Tour providing footwear to students in need.
• Frost BankcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTeaches financial literacy classes to CIS high school students and coordinates city-wide school supplies drive.
• Houston Methodist HospitalcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Smithwood Medical Institute provides students healthcare certification and hospital experience through nursing externship program.

Scale indicators13 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Communities In Schools (National Network): The national parent organization of CIS of Houston and sister affiliates nationwide, operating the same wraparound Student Support Specialist model across hundreds of districts. CIS of Houston is one of its largest and most established affiliates.
• Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Houston: Provides after-school academic support, mentoring, and wraparound youth services in Greater Houston, targeting many of the same at-risk youth populations and relying on a comparable nonprofit + corporate sponsor + government funding mix.
• Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Houston: School- and community-based youth mentoring nonprofit serving Greater Houston. Directly comparable on mentor-driven academic and personal outcomes, embedded site model, and donor/corporate funding model.
• City Year Houston: Places full-time near-peer mentors directly in high-need schools to drive attendance, behavior, and course performance — a near-mirror of CIS's Student Support Specialist model with the same evidence-based, outcome-tracked approach.

Broad incumbents

• United Way of Greater Houston: Large regional nonprofit that funds and convenes many of the same social-service and education programs CIS delivers, including student support, mental health, and basic-needs work across the Greater Houston area.
• YMCA of Greater Houston: Operates after-school programming, youth development, and family services across the Houston region — overlapping in target population (at-risk youth), service mix, and corporate/civic funding sources.

Emerging players

• Mental Health America of Greater Houston: Regional mental health advocacy and direct-service nonprofit whose school-based mental health programming overlaps directly with CIS's Mental Health Initiative — a natural partner/competitor for school counselor funding.
• KIPP Texas Public Schools: Houston-region charter network serving low-income students that operates its own wraparound student support services. Comparable on target population, evidence-based outcomes, and embedded-campus service design.
• Goodwill Industries of Houston: Workforce-development and reentry-focused nonprofit in Houston that overlaps with CIS's career exploration, internship, and college-to-career work for at-risk youth and adults.

Others

• Houston Food Bank: Direct service partner of CIS of Houston (Mobile Pantry, Backpack Buddies, School Market). Ecosystem-adjacent rather than competitive, but comparable as a Houston-area nonprofit delivering basic-needs services through schools.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/cishouston
• Facebookfacebook.com/cishouston
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cishouston

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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