Caring School Community (CSC), formerly called the Child Development Project, is a universal elementary school (K-6) improvement program aimed at promoting positive youth development. The program is designed to create a caring school environment characterized by kind and supportive relationships and collaboration among students, staff, and parents. The CSC model is consistent with research-based practices for increasing student achievement as well as the theoretical and empirical literature supporting the benefits of a caring classroom community in meeting students’ needs for emotional and physical safety, supportive relationships, autonomy, and sense of competence. By creating a caring school community, the program seeks to promote prosocial values, increase academic motivation and achievement, and prevent drug use, violence, and delinquency. CSC has four components designed to be implemented over the course of the school year: (1) Class Meeting Lessons, which provide teachers and students with a forum to get to know one another and make decisions that affect classroom climate; (2) Cross-Age Buddies, which help build caring cross-age relationships; (3) Homeside Activities, which foster communication at home and link school learning with home experiences and perspectives; and (4) Schoolwide Community-Building Activities, which link students, parents, teachers, and other adults in the school. Schoolwide implementation of CSC is recommended because the program builds connections beyond the classroom