Our children need a sense of Community

Network in the Schools is based on the premise that a sense of belonging, of being listened to, of feeling cared for, and of feeling secure is a necessary prerequisite to growing up as a fully actualized human being. All too often, and increasingly, society, the school environment, and even the home does not provide this for our children. We believe that this lack of connection and safety is the major root of teen pregnancy, drug use, violence, suicide, and gang involvement.

It is clear that Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris did not experience any of the above, and tried with all their might to find a place where they might experience that sense of community. They did not even find acceptance in the "Trenchcoat Mafia"!

The core of the NIS program is the weekly meeting, which, over time, creates a community for the participants. The sharing of self-affirmations, self-concerns, self-improvement plans, and self-reflections that goes on week after week, month after month, and year after year turns the meeting into a place where a child feels safe, secure, listened to, and accepted.

For some children, the NIS "Family" becomes their only place of refuge, and the mutual support they find can help them deal with the world outside.

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