20 Years of Partnership and Progress: United Way Community Schools Celebrate Two Decades of Advancing Student and Family Success
For 20 years, United Way Community Schools have transformed how our region supports students and families, turning schools into neighborhood hubs where every child has the opportunity to thrive.
On October 21, 2025, United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley, Moravian University and community partners came together to celebrate a powerful milestone—two decades of Community Schools in the Lehigh Valley—and to announce a bold new vision: Every School a Community School.
Since 2005, Community Schools have worked to remove barriers to learning by connecting students and families to essential resources, trusted relationships and opportunities to grow. Today, the network reaches nearly 20,000 students across 34 schools in five school districts throughout Lehigh, Northampton and Carbon counties.
“Community Schools produce powerful and transformative results,” shared Jill Pereira, Vice President of Strategic Partnerships at United Way. “They improve school climate and culture, student behavior and sense of belonging, student attendance, family engagement and academic growth. For the past two years, Community School students have been outperforming their peers across the region and state in academic growth. That’s something to celebrate.”
“Today is not about any one person,” said Khushboo Jain, Director of United Way’s Community School Network. “It’s about the community that has made twenty years of impact possible. Every child deserves a school that sees them, grows them and surrounds them with possibility.”
Reflecting on the national growth of the model, Abe Fernandez, Vice President of Collective Impact with Children’s Aid and Director of the National Center for Community Schools, spoke about the importance of persistence and partnership.
“Every school should be a community school,” Fernandez said. “That’s the vision. When systems work together, we can ensure that schools become the center of thriving neighborhoods.”
The event also highlighted a new partnership with StriveTogether, a national network that partners with communities to advance a cradle-to-career approach for economic mobility. Through a collaboration between The Leonard Parker Pool Institute for Health and United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley, Allentown School District recently became the first StriveTogether partnership in Pennsylvania. The initiative promotes student success, economic mobility and community leadership. This partnership marks an important first step toward achieving the region’s bold vision of Every School a Community School—aligning systems and data to build stronger neighborhoods and greater opportunity for every child.
The Lehigh Valley welcomed Russell W. Booker, Ph.D, Chief Executive Officer of Spartanburg Academic Movement and Chair of the StriveTogether Board of Directors. With more than 30 years of experience in education and community leadership, Dr. Booker is recognized nationally for his work in advancing collaborative strategies that improve educational outcomes and economic mobility.
In his keynote address, he highlighted how the work of StriveTogether demonstrates what’s possible when systems align to support students and families in a more holistic way. His message focused on shared responsibility and the long-term commitment it takes to create lasting change for children and communities.
“The magic happens when we’re all moving in the same direction,” Dr. Booker shared. “Partnership is the vehicle that gets us there.”
A thoughtful discussion followed, featuring Carol D. Birks Ed.D., Superintendent and Chief Executive Officer for the Allentown School District, Dr. Jack Silva, Superintendent of the Bethlehem Area School District, Samantha Shaak Ph.D., Executive Director of the Leonard Parker Pool Institute for Health and Darian Colbert, Executive Director of the Cohesion Network. Moderated by Pereira, the conversation explored how partnerships like StriveTogether build on two decades of Community School success—strengthening family engagement, expanding student opportunity and empowering neighborhoods to lead lasting change.
“This milestone is a testament to what’s possible when a community UNITES around its children,” shared Marci Lesko, President and Chief Executive Officer of United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley. “Today, we look forward to the work ahead — continuing to innovate, collaborate and strengthen the path for every child in our community.”
Thank you to the event sponsors Crayola, Capital Blue Cross, Hank and Joanne Barnett and Moravian University, and to every partner who helped make 20 years of Community School impact possible.
