New $5.5M center aims to expand student support across North Texas

Ja’Cyriah Lacy just wanted to play basketball.

The Lake Worth High School junior thought the sport would define her path — until her social worker pressed her to think bigger. Now, instead of only chasing buckets on the hardwood, she’s charting a course toward college with plans of studying sports medicine or sports photography.

Communities In Schools of Greater Tarrant County leaders said this is the purpose of their work: Helping students see beyond obstacles. 

It’s the kind of impact they hope will expand with the opening of the organization’s new $5.5 million Center for Student Support in Westworth Village, which offers counseling, food, clothing and training services for thousands of students and families across 11 North Texas school districts.

The project, three years in the making, gives Communities In Schools a permanent hub after years of working out of smaller, temporary spaces. Leaders said the center will allow social workers to respond faster to students’ needs and build new partnerships with health providers and universities, leaders said.

Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker joined Tarrant County leaders and educators at Wednesday’s ribbon cutting.

“The topic of education is absolutely at the top of headlines across the state and right now, especially in Fort Worth,” Parker said. “Let’s focus on the kids. What does it take to make sure their classroom, their school, their district is successful?”

The Center for Student Support, located off Westworth Boulevard, includes four new therapy rooms for after-hours and weekend counseling, a food pantry in partnership with Texas Health Community Hope, a closet stocked with student clothing and a supply station filled with school supplies.

For Communities In Schools workers embedded on campuses, the new site means faster access to essentials. 

“Now all I have to do is ask my supervisor or a person that’s here for whatever resource I need, and I can usually get that answer within a day or two,” social worker Desiree Smith said.

Last year, Communities In Schools leaders were searching for the $2.8 million needed to finish the project. CEO Lindsey Garner said longtime supporters stepped up in the final months to close that gap.

Campaign chair Matt Dufrene, vice president at Texas Health Resources, said the generosity reflected a deeper commitment to students. He grew emotional as he described why the work matters.

“Every kid needs a champion,” Dufrene said. “They may need stability, healthy food, shelter, clothes or maybe just someone to talk to. This is what Communities In Schools does.”

For Lacy, who’s aiming to graduate in May, Communities In Schools is a safe space, she said, and helped her envision her future.

“At first it was all about basketball, but my social worker asked, ‘What are you going to do?’ Now my top schools are Baylor University, University of North Texas and the University of North Carolina,” she said. 

Communities In Schools serves nearly 6,000 students annually through licensed social workers placed directly in schools. The new building ensures staff can continue to meet urgent needs while creating new partnerships, such as a counseling training program with Tarleton State University, which will bring graduate students into the center for hands-on experience while expanding the number of professionals available to families.

Garner has seen the immediate impact.

“Our food pantry has already been restocked several times,” she said. 

In the long term, she envisions the center as a place where social workers and community partners can collaborate, host student leadership events and expand the pipeline of future counselors.

“I think the possibilities are endless,” she said.

Matthew Sgroi is an education reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at matthew.sgroi@fortworthreport.org or @matthewsgroi1. 

At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.