Programs & Initiatives

Development and ongoing support of our Neighborhood Family Councils (or NFCs) is CBEL’s primary activity. As of January 2026, we have 5 functioning councils with plans to start 2 more by summer 2026. For more information about our councils, visit our Neighborhood Family Councils tab in the header menu. CBEL hopes to expand so that eventually every title 1 elementary school in Salem and Keizer (21 schools) has an NFC in their neighborhood.

The Neighborhood Safety and Community Violence Reduction Initiative (CVRI) is a community-led, coordinated effort to reduce shootings, homicides, and the fear of violence in Salem and Keizer. In partnership with the Salem Police Department, Salem Health Foundation, Mano a Mano, Salem Leadership Foundation, and other community partners, CVRI aligns prevention, intervention, hospital-based support, and call-in strategies. Guided by resident voice and national best practices, the initiative addresses root causes of violence through trauma-informed, culturally responsive approaches that build trust, promote non-retaliation, and strengthen pathways to safety, stability, and belonging.

CBEL’s Neighborhood Support Team connects families in the Hallman, Highland, and Washington neighborhoods to timely, coordinated support that addresses immediate needs and promotes long-term stability. Working in partnership with schools, healthcare providers, and community organizations, this team responds to referrals from neighborhoods and Neighborhood Family Councils to help families navigate complex systems. Using a strengths-based, trauma-informed approach, the team aligns services, reduces duplication, and removes barriers to care. By centering families as the solution and coordinating across partners, this team helps families stabilize, build resilience, and move toward lasting wellbeing. CBEL is actively pursuing official SIT (Service Integration Team) status for this group. CBEL hopes to expand or duplicate this team to provide support to all NFC neighborhoods.

CBEL’s Highland Kindergarten Family Support Project is a targeted pilot supporting families of Kindergarten students at Highland Elementary School. The project ensures parents receive timely, appropriate support to ensure that their children arrive to school every day, ready to learn. Current efforts focus on strengthening relationships with families whose children are not attending school regularly and helping parents assess needs, access resources, and build stability. This initiative connects closely with CBEL’s Neighborhood Support Team, allowing families to receive coordinated support that promotes regular attendance, academic success, and social-emotional wellbeing. This project works in partnership with Highland’s Super School team.

CBEL’s RULER Initiative supports children, families, and educators in building strong social and emotional skills that promote learning, wellbeing, and healthy relationships. Grounded in the RULER framework—Recognizing, Understanding, Labeling, Expressing, and Regulating emotions—the initiative helps adults and children develop emotional awareness and effective communication. CBEL is the first community-based organization to partner with Yale University to bring RULER tools and skills directly to parents and their children in neighborhood settings. CBEL will pilot RULER classes in early 2026, and hopes to expand to all Neighborhood Family Council (NFC) neighborhoods.

CBEL’s Play Groups provide children and families in CBEL neighborhoods with safe, fun, and developmentally enriching opportunities to connect, learn, and grow together. There are currently two groups: one serving the Highland neighborhood and one in Keizer (Cummings/Kennedy), co-sponsored by the Marion and Polk Early Learning Hub. These parent-and-child sessions foster early literacy, social-emotional skills, and positive parent-child interactions while building neighborhood connections. Facilitated by trained staff and community volunteers, Play Groups are culturally responsive, inclusive, trauma-informed, and in the process of incorporating RULER tools and skills to strengthen emotional awareness and regulation. By creating space for shared learning, CBEL helps children thrive, supports parents, and strengthens the social fabric of the neighborhood.