Hannah Miller Community for Students Executive Director
By Lorrie Ross
Staff Writer
Clay County Community for Students, Inc. began in 1997 as Clay County Communities in Schools. However, the non-profit’s name was changed to Clay County Community for Students, Inc. in 2017 and it has continued to help students and families.
According to CCCFS’s website, they work with businesses, schools, parents, churches, civic organizations, as well as health and social service providers, to bring the community together in a spirit of trust and cooperation.
“Clay County Community for Students, Inc. is a private, non-profit organization, which promotes and facilitates the coordinated delivery of existing resources to children and their families within a school community,” the site says. “Together, we are all working to ensure every student has the opportunity to succeed.”
As the director of CCCFS, Hannah Miller has learned a lot about the organization, as well as community needs. Miller, who replaced Theresa Waldroup as the group’s director in June 2023 after Waldroup’s retirement, explained. “Since I started, I have discovered so much about the nonprofit world and our area of North Carolina,” Miller said. “My biggest lesson from this position is that no one is exempt from hardships, so we each need to extend a helping hand to those around us.”
There are few funding sources available for rural communities, so CCCFS works to bring community groups together to fill gaps. In addition to those already mentioned, CCCFS works with a variety of government agencies like North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service, North Carolina Forest Service and Tennessee Valley Authority, along with others. For August, CCCFS has partnered with Vaya, the Clay Child Collaborative and several other agencies, to bring a Back to School Bash and outdoor family movie beginning at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 14 on the Beal Center lawn.
Over the years, CCCFS has helped hundreds of students and families with items such as clothing, shoes, glasses, school supplies and other basic needs. Miller works closely with CCCFS Site Coordinator Karen Dudley, student tutor Chris Batchelder and lots of volunteers to make this happen in several ways.
Hands of Hope is an important CCCFS project. “The mission of Hayesville Hands of Hope is to help meet the needs of the children and families of Clay County who are in a temporary crisis situation while emphasizing personal responsibility,” Miller said. “This includes providing shoes, coats and clothing as well as meeting other needs which cannot be met by the families. Hayesville Hands of Hope is funded by donations from churches, organizations and private citizens.”
Miller continued, “Through Hayesville Hands of Hope we can help Clay County residents with critical bill payments and car repair, clothing, a variety of other needs and coordinating with others in the community to help meet needs. All Hands of Hope requests must go through an approval process.”
Other CCCFS projects:
• School supplies. A partnership with United Way, churches and community organizations, ensures all students have necessary school supplies.
• Books for students. CCCFS maintains a selection of books available for all students. “These books are theirs to keep,” Miller added. “For some of them, these may be the only books they own.”
• Breakfast of Champions. This program pairs students from elementary, middle and high school to those with similar interests. The students meet weekly for breakfast in the school cafeteria.
• Great Leaps Reading and Great Leaps Math.
• Lunch with a mentor. Mentors and students meet weekly for lunch, giving students an opportunity to have caring adults in their lives.
• Mystery Reading Program. Community volunteers read stories to elementary classes, then discuss them together.
• Field trips and special events.
CCCFS uses community volunteers for many of these programs. Not only do volunteers assist during special events, but they offer support in other ways. Volunteer guest speakers share their knowledge of a subject related to a subject being taught, while volunteer proctors are used for end of year testing. Some volunteers act as tutors for students and others volunteer as translators for non-English speaking families.
“We are always looking for dedicated individuals interested in investing their time into our students,” Miller said. “Our site coordinator oversees and coordinates all of the tutors in the program. Volunteers do not need to be full-time Clay County residents. Anyone willing to work with any age group for tutoring, mentoring or school events, must fill out a volunteer application.”
She continued, “If you have a heart for kids and want to help positively impact their lives, consider applying. Here at CCCFS, we are always in need of mentors, tutors, volunteers, grant opportunities and donations. If you or your child are in need of assistance or if you feel you can help us in any way, do not hesitate to contact us. Together we can ensure every child in Clay County can reach his or her full potential.”
Miller ended, “I would like to see CFS continue to be a resource for students and families in need through collaboration with other organizations and strengthening connections in our area to work together for the common good.”
Anyone interested in tutoring should contact CCCFS Site Coordinator Karen Dudley: (828) 389-8586 ext. 1217.
Donations may be sent to:
Clay County Community For Students
P.O. Box 642
Hayesville, N.C. 28904
Call Miller: (828) 389-1625 or visit: www.claycountycfs.com.