The list below includes resources for parents, teachers and community members. Please submit any suggestions, questions or feedback to Cici Tompkins, Community Outreach Manager, at 314.561.8646 or cici@ceamteam.org.
Special Education Advocacy and Legal Services
American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU): Non-partisan, not-for-profit, membership organization dedicated to the preservation and promotion of civil liberties regardless of creed, race, religion or other labeling through education, advocacy, and litigation. Offices located in Eastern and Western Missouri.
Arch City Defenders: non-profit civil rights law firm providing holistic legal advocacy and combating the criminalization of poverty and state violence against poor people and people of color.
Children’s Advocacy Project: Comprehensive listing of many social service agencies, camps and mentoring services that exist to improve the lives of families that need our help the most in the Kansas City and St. Louis area.
The IEP Center: Located in Northwestern Missouri and offers special education advocacy and legal advice to parents.
Legal Services of Missouri: FREE legal advocacy services to any child that qualifies (under their specifications) and are not receiving the aid they need or are being excluded because of a special need. Legal services are also available to low-income citizens. Offices are located in Eastern, Western and Southern Missouri
Missouri First Steps: Missouri’s Early Intervention system for infants and toddlers, birth to age 3, who have delayed development or diagnosed conditions that are associated with developmental disabilities.
Missouri Parents Act (MPACT): Parent Training and Information Center that serves children with disabilities, their families and communities throughout the state. They provide free special education process and effective advocacy training.
Wrightslaw: National organization that provides parent and professional legal training about being your child’s best advocate.
Education Policy
Center for Education Reform: Organization that works to improve the accuracy and quality of discourse and decisions about education reform, leading to fundamental policy changes that make a difference long after news and election cycles have ended. Find information for Missouri here.
Blueprint4SummerSTL: Access to summer camps and events to help plan your summer.
Children’s Advocacy Project: Comprehensive listing of many social service agencies, camps and mentoring services that exist to improve the lives of families that need our help the most in the Kansas City and St. Louis area.
Child Care Aware: Community resource on child care throughout the state.
Columbia Public Schools Summer Programs: Comprehensive list of summer programs offered in Columbia, Missouri. As well as, tuitin-free programs and after school programs.
Missouri After-School Network (MASN): Builds systems across the state that improve, support, and sustain high quality afterschool programs.
Resources for Parents and Students
Connections Academy: A list of the best educational websites and online learning games for K-8 Students
Khan Academy: Free resources available to anyone; students, teachers, home-schooler, principal, or an adult returning to the classroom after 20 years. Over 4,000 videos and other Khan Academy materials and resources are available completely free of charge.
Kumon: After-school math, reading, and foreign language academic enrichment program. Their individualized and personalized approach helps children concepts based on their ability rather than their age or grade. Kumon does charge a fee for services but does provide a free evaluation and parent meeting.
Parents as Teachers: Provides free information, support and encouragement parents need to help their children develop optimally during the crucial early years of life. Find the Parents as Teachers program in your school district.
Parent Toolkit:NBC News’ Education Nation Parent Toolkit helps you navigate your child’s journey from pre-kindergarten through high school. It is designed to help track and support progress at each stage.
Sylvan Learning Centers: Individualized learning plans for students through in-person tutoring or online assistance. Sylvan charges a fee for services but offers a flexible student loan program, as well as, coupons via the internet.
Support Services
Local Investment Commission (LINC): A citizen-driven community collaborative that coordinates the delivery of child, family and senior support services while forging connections between neighborhoods and government agencies to improve the lives of children and families in the Kansas City region.
United Way: Missouri resource for support with basic and emergency needs, work initiatives, support for children and families, as well as support for seniors and those with disabilities in Greater St. Louis and Central Missouri.
Child Wellbeing Ecosystem Map: This Clark-Fox Family Foundation map shows all of the resources available to parents in the St. Louis area and how they are interconnected.
School Options
Great Schools: Looking for schools in your community? Use this website to explore top-rated schools, find local information, talk “school” with local parents, and much more.
Missouri School Improvement Program (MSIP): Provides information from the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education process for reviewing and accrediting Missouri school districts and charter public schools.
Today and Tomorrow Foundation: The Archdiocese of St. Louis provides scholarships for private and parochial elementary school. This program is open to all families that reside within the St. Louis City limits, demonstrate financial need, and whose child(ren) is not currently attending a parochial or private elementary school.
Application for Independent Secondary Schools in St. Louis: (ISSL): By applying “online” using the ISSL Secondary School Standard Application Online families can apply to multiple schools simultaneously, enter demographic information and responses to questions only once, submit application fees electronically, have a digital record of their application, and register for the SSAT Admission Test. In addition, the online application allows parents and students to easily review and make any changes to the application prior to its submission.
Common Online Charter School Application: The Missouri Charter Public School Association has come to an agreement with SchoolMint to offer an online and mobile communications platform to the charter public schools in the City of St. Louis. This year 17 charter public schools are piloting the platform which will make the application and admission process easier for parents and students.
Scholarship Central: Free, online system through which any student in the St. Louis area can easily learn about and apply to St. Louis area college scholarship and interest-free loan programs.