Communities In Schools of Nevada (CIS) is proud to announce the appointment of two new members to the organization’s leadership team: Cristal Porter joins CIS as the state’s Programs, Data and Learning Director; and Erin Combs as the state Programmatic Initiatives and Partnership Specialist.
Porter is a professional with extensive experience in the fields of education and personal development. In this new role, Porter will oversee the organization’s statewide data and programs teams, ensuring seamless collaboration and coordination across Southern, Western and Northeastern Nevada regions. Working closely with CIS’ three regions, Porter will shape program standards and training and enhance program outcomes and student experiences. Porter brings diverse career background as an educator, author, brand ambassador and goal coach with over a decade of experience in teaching and curriculum design. A graduate of Columbia University and the University of Oxford, Porter earned her M.Ed. in Curriculum & Instruction and her M.Sc. in Learning & Teaching with a focus on culturally responsive teaching.
Also joining the Programs, Data and Learning Team is Combs. In this new role, Combs will be managing special initiative programming and overseeing program partnerships and procedures alongside Porter. She will be working with all levels of staff to communicate program efficacy, manage special initiatives and help to standardize the programmatic partnership process across the state. Previously, Combs served as site coordinator for the organization for five years in Western Nevada, discovering a passion for working with students and families that translates to her new role in the state office. Combs graduated from the University of Nevada, Reno with a bachelor’s and master’s where she also played NCAA Division I softball.
About Communities In Schools of Nevada
Communities In Schools of Nevada (CIS) is the nation’s leading evidence-based stay-in-school organization, serving 108 schools across the state – nearly one in four Title I or high-needs schools. CIS believes every child has potential – regardless of race, zip code or socioeconomic background – but may lack equal opportunity to succeed.
CIS places full-time and professionally trained site coordinators in schools across the state to support students who face barriers to their success—increasing the likelihood of students staying in school and graduating on time. The organization taps into a statewide network of more than 120 community nonprofits, partners and agencies, literally bringing the community into the school, to get students whatever they need to overcome the barriers they face that prevent them from achieving academically. From eyeglasses, dental care, health care and professional counseling, to food, school supplies, clothing and housing, CIS identifies student needs and finds a way to address them, closing the gaps they experience in their everyday lives. For CIS case-managed students who were eligible to graduate in the 2021-2022 school year, 94 percent received their diploma or GED.
In total, CIS of Nevada serves nearly 100,000 students attending 13 schools in Western Nevada, 15 schools in Northeastern Nevada, and 80 schools in Southern Nevada. Nationally, Communities In Schools provides services in more than 3,270 schools in 25 states and the District of Columbia, serving 1.8 million young people and their families every year.
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Contact: Cherryl Kaopua, The Warren Group, [email protected], 702-408-8334
