Someone to Count On: A Morning with CIS Site Coordinator Chloé Conley

Someone to Count On: A Morning with CIS Site Coordinator Chloé Conley

Within the first few minutes of spending a morning with Chloé Conley at Rose Hamilton Elementary School in Centerville, it became clear how quickly her day could change. She was already helping a student fix their hair, exchanging updates with the school nurse, and responding to another child who needed a jacket.

Chloé helped the student find one in their size, then stepped into the hallway to greet students as they headed to class for the day. “Good morning!” she called out, followed by a familiar reminder: “Make good choices!”

Before we had even reached our first scheduled stop, I had watched her help students prepare for the day, connect with staff, and greet children who clearly knew her well. As Communities In Schools of Wayne County’s Site Coordinator at Rose Hamilton, Chloé is part of the school’s daily rhythm. Students know where to find her. Teachers reach out when they need support. Conversations with the nurse continue throughout the day.

When asked what she is most proud of in her work, her answer came back to those relationships. “I’m most proud of being someone students and families can turn to when they need support. I love being able to build relationships with students and help them feel seen, supported, and cared for.”

That was easy to see during our first classroom visit. We stopped in a kindergarten room to check in with a teacher before the morning’s all-school assembly. While we were there, a student asked for a short break in Chloé’s office. Back in her office, Chloé helped the student prepare for the assembly with noise-reducing headphones before returning to class.

During the assembly, Chloé became an extra set of eyes, watching for students who might be overwhelmed by the noise and activity. She also helped distribute packets to teachers and wished children a great day as they headed back to their classrooms. Then we returned to her office to discuss what came next.

Almost immediately, the phone rang. A student needed her assistance in a classroom. Chloé did not hesitate, and off we went. I watched as Chloé spent time helping the student work through frustrations and focus on the lesson. Just a few minutes earlier, Chloé had been watching a room full of children. Now she was giving one student the patience and attention they needed to continue their day.

I was struck by how readily she made that shift. Each new need required something different from her, and she kept adjusting. “What has surprised me most about my role as a Site Coordinator is how different every day can be,” she explained. “I came into this role knowing I would be supporting students, but I didn’t realize how many different areas that would include.”

Some days involve helping students build skills for managing emotions and relationships. Others include connecting families with resources, supporting teachers, or organizing assistance. Often, several of those needs happen within the same morning. “I’ve learned that being a Site Coordinator means being willing to step in wherever there is a need.”

A Role Built Around Trust

On our way out of the classroom, we stopped at another room to pick up two students for a small group. Back in Chloé’s office, we played UNO and helped celebrate a birthday. The morning shifted again, this time making room for conversation, a game, and a celebration. Those moments gave students time with an adult who knew them and was happy to share part of their day.

When asked about a student story that had stayed with her, Chloé reflected on the growth she has seen through consistent support. “One thing that has really stuck with me is seeing how much a student can change when they have someone consistently showing up for them.”

She described students who initially struggled with emotions, behavior, relationships, or feeling comfortable at school. Over time, she has watched them become more confident, open up, ask for help, and make positive choices. “Sometimes the biggest victories are small ones that other people may not notice, but those moments mean a lot to me.”

Walking through Rose Hamilton with her, I could see the trust behind those changes. Students stopped to ask if they could eat lunch with her. Others approached for hugs, more than I could count. They were comfortable asking for her time and eager to spend a few minutes with her.

That familiarity carried into her relationships with staff. Teachers called on her for assistance. The nurse exchanged updates with her. She moved throughout the building as someone who belonged in the conversations and understood the needs being discussed.

The Work Behind the Moments

After the small group returned to class, Chloé quickly wrote down the many things she had done that morning so she could log them later. It was a brief pause, but it offered a glimpse of an important part of Site Coordination that the public rarely sees or hears about: the data behind the daily work.

Alongside providing support, Site Coordinators document services and monitor progress toward student goals. Information about attendance, behavior, and academics helps CIS recognize improvement, identify continued challenges, and determine when support may need to change.

At the school level, data helps identify broader needs, guide services, and measure progress toward schoolwide goals. Looking at both individual students and patterns across the school helps CIS make informed decisions about where to focus time and resources. Chloé’s notes were part of that larger process. Each recorded service helps document the support provided, while ongoing progress monitoring helps show how students are doing over time.

Watching her fit that responsibility between student needs was a reminder of how much happens behind the scenes. The outcomes CIS shares with the community depend on Site Coordinators making time to document, review, and use that information throughout the year. That morning, there was only a short window to write things down. Lunch was approaching, and more students were waiting.

Understanding the Worry Behind the Moment

After two lunch groups filled with conversations and crafts, we headed to the cafeteria to finish lunch duty. We opened food, answered questions, helped students settle, and got them ready for their teachers to return. As we left, we encountered the student we had supported earlier in the classroom. This time, the transition to the library was proving difficult.

The student was worried about an outstanding library fee and believed they would not be able to check out another book. Earlier that week, CIS had been able to cover library late fees thanks to generous sponsors and donors. Chloé reassured the student and helped them get to the library. That moment stayed with me. What appeared to be difficulty moving to the next activity had a specific worry behind it. Taking time to understand the concern made it possible to help.

Community support had addressed the expense. Chloé was there to explain that it had been resolved and help the child move forward. “I’ve learned that there are so many people and organizations in our community who genuinely want to help,” she shared. “Sometimes families just need someone to help connect them to the right resource.”

She has also learned how important it is to approach students and families with understanding. “You can’t always see what a family or student may be going through just by looking at them. There are often challenges happening outside of school that we may not know about, which has made me even more passionate about meeting families with understanding and without judgment.”

A library fee might seem like a small expense. For this child, it had become a worry that was affecting the next part of their school day. Chloé’s relationship with the student allowed her to help connect a practical solution with the reassurance they needed.

Part of the Rose Hamilton Community

On our way back, we stopped by the nurse’s office again to exchange updates. Later, Chloé spoke with the principal and teachers about student needs and plans for support. The care throughout Rose Hamilton was clear. So was Chloé’s place within that team. Staff included her in planning, shared concerns with her, and trusted her to help students throughout the day.

One misconception she identified about Site Coordination was how narrowly people sometimes understand the role. “I think one misconception is that a Site Coordinator only works with students who are struggling academically or behaviorally,” she explained. “In reality, the role is much broader. We support the whole student and the whole family.”

That can include attendance, relationships, academics, behavior, basic needs, and family resources. “A big part of the job is also building relationships with teachers, families, community partners, and students so we can work together to remove barriers to success.” We had seen those relationships at work in classrooms, hallways, the cafeteria, and her office. All of it happened before 1 p.m.

When we finally had time to sit and talk, I learned more about Chloé’s path to CIS. She has a degree in business and marketing, but through different jobs and experiences, she found herself drawn toward helping children with behavior and supporting them through challenging moments. Outside of school, she spends time with her daughter and helps with the teams her daughter plays on, including softball, basketball, and soccer.

By the end of the morning, I was in awe of how many times Chloé had adjusted to a new situation. A phone call changed the plan. A child asked for a break. A conversation revealed a worry. She kept responding, making room for each need while staying connected to the people around her.

“Whether it’s helping a student work through a difficult situation, providing academic or behavioral support, connecting a family with resources, or simply being someone a student knows they can talk to, I’m proud of the difference those small moments can make.” Those small moments filled our morning. A jacket that fit. Headphones for an assembly. Help through a frustrating lesson. A birthday celebrated. Reassurance on the way to the library.

Together, they showed how deeply Chloé is part of Rose Hamilton. She knows the school’s routines, works closely with its staff, and has built relationships that make students comfortable coming to her. I left with a deeper appreciation for how much skill and attention it takes to be that person throughout an unpredictable day. The students approaching her in the hallway already seemed to understand what a morning alongside her made clear: when they need help, encouragement, or someone to share a little of their day with, they have someone to count on.