The History and Vision of NASS

To serve as an organization that is a clearinghouse of information and support for administrators and schools that want to offer quality, Christian education for at-risk youth.

Street Schools...the road to hope for at-risk kids

Within just a few years of the formation of the Denver Street Schools in 1985, Mr. Tom Tillapaugh, DSS founder and administrator, began to receive calls from educators in other cities requesting help in starting like schools for troubled youth in their own metropolitan areas.

In an effort to have an organized response to an increasing nationwide need, Mr. Tillapaugh founded the National Association of Street Schools in 1996. NASS provides a clearinghouse of information and support for educators across the nation who wish to start schools for at-risk adolescents or desire help for their already existing interventionist model school.

There is clearly a crisis in urban education in our country. According to the Department of Education, there are 575 urban school districts in the United States that serve over 11 million children. Published reports state that children in urban schools by virtually every measure perform far worse than children outside urban centers. Furthermore, the longer the student stays in school, the wider the gap becomes.

In contrast, the Street School concept has over the past 17 years proven to be the answer that many urban students with a history of academic failure need. At Street Schools, they find small class sizes, personalized academic attention, a moral code by which to live their life and support services to assist them in being successful.

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		It was July 31, 1984 and our 1972 Ford LTD was loaded to capacity and weighed down by a small U-haul trailer. The weather was hot and sticky as my wife, Yvonne, our two young daughters, and I drove across the plains of rural Oklahoma toward Denver. I was leaving my job as a school principal near Tulsa and moving to Denver to answer what I knew was God’s call. The story actually began five years earlier. I was a public school teacher in Oklahoma and in the summer of 1979, we traveled to Denver to visit my cousin, Andy. He operated Genesis Center, a ministry for the homeless and street people in downtown Denver. Andy would go out onto the streets every day and find the down and out and addicted and offer them food, clothing, a warm place to live, and the love of Christ. I had no idea at that time that God was preparing me to start a ministry to rescue at-risk urban young people and give them hope for the future. Being an educator, it struck me that most of the people I encountered at Genesis Center did not have a high school diploma. Without the education and training, their chances of achieving self-sufficiency and meaningful lives were minimal. God began to work on my heart to convince me that I could be the person who could add an educational component to the ministry. For five years, God kept the vision of a school for street kids alive in my heart. Finally, in the spring of 1984, the Lord said it was time to move to Denver and follow the vision He had given me. So, we loaded up and moved west. We had little more than an old car and a vision from God. By then, Genesis Center was closed and Andy was running a Christian Coffeehouse called, Jesus on Main Street. After arriving in Denver, it didn’t take long for me to gain an even better grasp on the plight of the homeless as my wife, kids, and I moved into subsidized housing, accessed subsidized medical care to get my wife through the birth of our third child, and signed up for WIC and AFDC. Yvonne and I also became expert dumpster divers! Though it was difficult, our family clung to the belief that God had called us to Denver to educate at-risk young people so they, too, can have hope for the future. In the spring of 1985, a couple offered to rent a house next to the Coffeehouse where we could open a Street School. They were God-sent Benefactors as He continued to unfold His plan. On May 13, 1985, the Denver Street School became a reality! That first year was very challenging as I learned to adjust traditional teaching methods and techniques to help my unique group of students. During that first year, I was the only teacher. It would have been easy to quit, but the Lord performed many marvelous and timely provisions of His mercy that showed and convinced me I was on the right track and smack dab in the middle of His Will. The following June, we held our first graduation and awarded three diplomas! One to Lanny, a street person from Andy’s old Genesis Center, one to Margie, a recovering addict, and another to Bob, a struggling Navy veteran. All three had received a Gift of Hope and continued to live meaningful and productive lives. In these three lives, and in the lives of many others destined to follow them, was the confirmation that we were doing what God wanted us to do. The Denver Street School continued to grow. We moved to larger facilities, added teachers, and eventually more campuses. All the time, God faithfully continued to send “Hope Partners” who provided the necessary resources and encouragment to keep us going. As early as 1989, I began to be approached by others around the country, asking me to help them start Street Schools in their own communities. Groups in Seattle, Fort Collins, Colorado Springs, and Tampa soon had schools based on the general premise that a quality Christ-based education delivered in a small personal family like environment by loving, caring, and excellent teachers is the key to giving hope for a successful future to troubled, at-risk young people. In 1996, representatives from the initial four schools met in Seattle to form the National Association of Street Schools. We covenanted to help others start and develop Street Schools in their cities and to seek out and equip these Street Schools with the best practices in all areas of program, operations, and development. Today, the National Association of Street Schools has more than 45 member schools around the country that are daily reaching out to rescue, prepare, and give hope to thousands of high-risk urban youth. To serve as an organization that is a clearinghouse of information and support for administrators and schools that want to offer quality, Christian education for at-risk youth. *Street Schools...the road to hope for at-risk kids* Within just a few years of the formation of the Denver Street Schools in 1985, Mr. Tom Tillapaugh, DSS founder and administrator, began to receive calls from educators in other cities requesting help in starting like schools for troubled youth in their own metropolitan areas. In an effort to have an organized response to an increasing nationwide need, Mr. Tillapaugh founded the National Association of Street Schools in 1996. NASS provides a clearinghouse of information and support for educators across the nation who wish to start schools for at-risk adolescents or desire help for their already existing interventionist model school. There is clearly a crisis in urban education in our country. According to the Department of Education, there are 575 urban school districts in the United States that serve over 11 million children. Published reports state that children in urban schools by virtually every measure perform far worse than children outside urban centers. Furthermore, the longer the student stays in school, the wider the gap becomes. In contrast, the Street School concept has over the past 17 years proven to be the answer that many urban students with a history of academic failure need. At Street Schools, they find small class sizes, personalized academic attention, a moral code by which to live their life and support services to assist them in being successful. top [ Home I Board of Director I Conferences I Guest Book I Donations History I Links I Membership I Newsletters I Press Releases I Resources School Directory I Services I Staff I Statistics I Success Stories ]