Billionaire Philanthropist Gives $13 Million to Houston Communities in Schools Branch — and a Longtime Volunteer Gets Her Due

What: Communities in Schools “Stay in School” gala

Where: The Post Oak Hotel

PC Moment: While there was much to applaud on this evening — testimonials from students, parents and support specialists — excitement over the $13 million gift to the Houston branch of CIS from billionaire philanthropist MacKenzie Scott remained paramount after last month’s announcement of the total $133.5 million give to Communities in Schools nationwide. Board members Judy Tate and Gina Carroll directed the celebration from the podium.

“Today is an important day for students who are underserved, under-resourced and in need of transformative support to build a brighter future,” national CIS president and CEO Rey Saldaña said in February on receipt of the MacKenzie Scott grant. “This unrestricted gift allows us to combat the inequities in public education and reimagine the way schools operate and show up for all students.

“Our national goal is to bring our model inside of every one of the 70,000 Title 1-eligible schools in the country. Currently, we operate in 3,000 schools. So we still have a long way to go, and we will need ongoing support to get there.”

CIS Student Support Specialists are embedded in some 170 campuses across the greater Houston metropolitan area, their task to break down barriers to student well-being including everything from crisis intervention to trauma and mental health counseling to providing basic necessities and doing “whatever it takes” to set students up for success in college and future careers.

The event, attended by more than 600, honored the memory of Julie Crosswell, Communities in Schools board member and supporter for 24 years during which she volunteered her time and social work experience to mentor CIS students at Lamar High School and Wisdom High School (then Lee High School). Accepting honors were Jewel Crosswell Stone, Will Crosswell, Bettina Crosswell Barrow and Julie’s husband Markley Crosswell.

In the hands of philanthropist chairs Mary and John Craddock, Illa and Will Gaunt, Sarita and Bob Hixon, and Cassie and John Milam, the dinner evening raised $730,000. The event closed out with dancing to the tunes of The Spazmatics.

PC Seen: Amy Mueller, Richard Helfman, Soraya McClelland, Charles Tate, Kirby and Scott McCool, Capera Nrinksy, Elaine Hixon, Lauren Hixon, Jack Craddock, Dr. Peter Kaldis, Linda Gale White and Harry Jones, Bonner and George Ball, and Lisa and David Sambrooks.