$2 million gift to help Columbus students in need

Communities in Schools of Ohio, a nonprofit that surrounds at-risk kids with services inside and outside school, has received an unprecedented $2 million donation.

Why it matters: The group establishes one-on-one relationships with children and coordinates with schools and local service providers to help families get food, housing, health care, counseling and access to technology for remote learning.

• With COVID-19 creating so much disruption, such work is critically important right now.

Zoom out: This is a sliver of a surprise $133.5 million donation philanthropist MacKenzie Scott gave to the nationwide organization, its largest ever received.

Zoom in: The Ohio affiliate serves nearly 22,000 students in 34 schools, including the Columbus and South-Western districts and charter schools.

💭 Alissa's thought bubble: As an education reporter with The Columbus Dispatch, I witnessed Communities in Schools buy families food for Thanksgiving dinner and teach kids yoga over Zoom during the early days of pandemic shutdowns.

• I'm excited to see what the group achieves with this transformative gift.