{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://susielee.house.gov/media/press-releases/lee-legislation-aims-provide-critical-support-nevada-students", "Lee Legislation Aims to Provide Critical Support to Nevada Students", "2025-12-19", "2025", "2025-12", "Democrat", "House", "NV", "Susie Lee", "L000590", "susielee.house.gov", "susielee", "https://susielee.house.gov/media/press-releases", "scraper", "Watch and Download Video of Press Conference\n\nLAS VEGAS, NV \u2013 Today, Congresswoman Susie Lee (NV-03) joined Ed W. Clark High School principal and a recent graduate, Clark County School District, and Communities In Schools of Nevada to highlight her Full-Service Community School Expansion Act, which improves student outcomes by helping public schools and districts bring in wraparound support services. These include medical, mental, and nutrition health services, mentoring and youth development programs, technical assistance, and continuing education courses. The Full-Service Community School Expansion Act would increase Nevada\u2019s access to funding to plan, implement, expand, and support these essential programs for our kids.\n\n\u201cWe know that student success goes well beyond the classroom. Unfortunately, many students in southern Nevada cannot meet their basic needs off school grounds and struggle to keep up their mental and physical health and academics,\u201d said Congresswoman Susie Lee. \u201cThat\u2019s exactly why we need a fully resourced Full-Service Community Schools Program to help schools meet students where they are and bridge these gaps in education.\u201d\n\nCommunities In Schools of Nevada is a recipient of a five-year, $11.8 million Full-Service Community Schools grant from the U.S. Department of Education. The grant supports services delivered in partnership with nonprofit and government agencies at six schools in the Clark, Elko and Humboldt County school districts.\n\n\u201cFull-Service Community Schools work because they bring resources directly into the school building and strengthen community where students already are. This model recognizes a simple truth: students learn best when their basic needs are met and when they are surrounded by trusted adults who know them, care about them, and help them navigate challenges,\u201d said Tami Hance-Lehr, CEO and State Director, Communities In Schools (CIS) of Nevada. \u201cThe Full-Service Community Schools Expansion Act ensures that more schools can move from isolated supports to fully integrated systems\u2014so more students and families receive the comprehensive support they need to succeed.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhen we commit to shared schoolwide goals and work together\u2014educators, students, families, and CIS\u2014we see real change. This work strengthens our school culture and helps students stay engaged, present, and on track,\u201d said Ms. Zeola Braxton, Clark High School Principal. \u201cIntegrated Student Supports make a real difference in our building, and we also see how those supports can be even more powerful when paired with the Full Service Community Schools model.\u201d\n\n\u201cIn the Clark County School District, many students arrive at school facing barriers that instruction alone cannot solve\u2014food insecurity, unmet mental health needs, housing instability, and trauma. When those barriers go unaddressed, attendance declines, behavior challenges increase, and learning suffers,\u201d said Dr. Jesse Welsh, Clark County School District Deputy Superintendent. \u201cThe Full-Service Community Schools Expansion Act would strengthen our ability to plan, implement, and sustain this work over time, scaling proven models already working in CCSD schools. When students are supported, they show up. And when they show up, they succeed.\u201d\n\n\u201cI\u2019ve always been very independent, and I didn\u2019t always ask for help, even when things felt overwhelming. There were times I struggled with my grades, and times when life made getting to school on time harder than it should have been. What made a difference was knowing there was a safe place on campus and a trusted adult\u2014my Site Coordinator, Ms. Cassandra, who noticed, who cared, and who helped connect me to resources instead of letting me fall behind. That\u2019s what Integrated Student Supports look like from a student\u2019s perspective. It\u2019s not just about academics. It\u2019s about having access to support when life happens, without having to leave campus or figure it out alone,\u201d said Madison Mulhall, CIS alumna and recent graduate of Clark High School. \u201cThe Full-Service Community Schools Expansion Act matters because students shouldn\u2019t have to struggle in silence. Support like this shouldn\u2019t be the exception. It should be the standard.\u201d\n\nFull-service community schools have a proven track record of producing tangible results for students \u2013 including advancing academic achievement and improving attendance. According to a 2024 report from the Education Law Center, Nevada stands out as one of the top three states most in need of additional resources, with funding levels well below average. Congresswoman Lee\u2019s legislation would help schools bridge this gap and provide the critical support services to their students.\n\nRead more below:\n\nKSNV-NBC 3: Local schools provide wraparound supports to improve student outcomes\n\nBy Tiffany Lane | December 19, 2025\n\nWhen it comes to learning there are times when students face obstacles outside of school that impact them in the classroom.\n\nClark County schools are tackling those challenges by adding extra support, including food, mental health, and other services.\n\nThey say some schools are already seeing positive results.\n\nFriday at a news conference, local leaders discussed the Full-Service Community Schools Expansion Act.\n\nCommunities in Schools of Nevada received a five-year, $11.8 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education to support those wraparound services for students.\n\nThe grant supports six schools across the state, including in CCSD.\n\n\"And the success of our students is just too important to leave that gap open,\" said U.S. Rep. Susie Lee, one of the lawmakers who introduced the bill. \"And this expansion act will allow more schools, especially in high-need areas, to participate in programs offered under the full-service community school program.\"\n\nThere are several schools in the district that are already taking the approach of wraparound services, including Clark High School.\n\nWhen a student has challenges outside of school, they are better able to focus in the classroom.\n\nCollege freshman Madison Mulhall said the resources she got at Clark High School set her up for success.\n\nShe received help from Communities in Schools or CIS during her time at Clark.\n\n\"Definitely supporting others as well as myself and definitely the scholarships because when you go to college, people are always worried about, Oh my, [how am I] gonna be able to pay for this and be paid for that,\" said Mulhall.\n\nThewraparound services, education leaders said, benefit students at the school in different ways.\n\n\"Like, if you're not worrying about where your next meal is coming from, or, you know, that you're going to have shoes on your feet and all those kinds of things, then you can actually focus on learning,\" said Dr. Jesse Welsh, CCSD Deputy Superintendent.\n\n\"We support students' mental health, their social emotional needs, their nutrition, and their safety, and students can't learn if those needs aren't met,\" said Clark High School Principal Zeola Braxton.\n\nBraxton has CIS site coordinators, counselors, and social workers to help remove barriers for students so they can focus on learning, and teachers can focus on teaching.\n\n\"It allows me and the other folks at this school to create an environment where students have everything that they need,\" said Braxton. \"Whether it's a backpack, a pencil, or somebody to just listen in order for them to be successful; investing in schools is ultimately investing in our community.\"\n\nSimilar services are helping other schools in the district as well.\n\n\"That support included academic assistance, it included attendance assistance, behavioral interventions, family engagement, and enrichment activities that bring the community together inside of our schools,\" said Tami Hance-Lehr, State Director & CEO for CIS.\n\nClark High School stats show that improvements are happening.\n\nFor example, over the last few years, the school's chronic absenteeism has been going down.\n\nBefore coming to Congress, Lee spent two decades leading education non-profits \u2013 reducing dropout rates and making sure Nevada kids had the wrap-around services they needed to thrive.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T20:09:11Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://susielee.house.gov/media/press-releases/lee-legislation-aims-provide-critical-support-nevada-students"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.103213056921959, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}