The Program Manager for Ohio, Megan Bettelon, knows what it takes to support City Connects Coordinators, because she served as one herself for seven years. She understands deeply how important supporting the whole child can be, and the importance of data in discovering trends that can help schools to better care for and educate the students in their community.
These beliefs and experiences give Bettelon a rock-solid foundation to support her team of Coordinators, especially during the beginning of the school year, as they start to implement the City Connects practice.
“I believe wholeheartedly that each student, no matter where they are from or their socioeconomic status, deserves the same access to quality education and opportunities,” Bettelon said. “As a Program Manager, I can assist Coordinators in this job by coaching them, being a sounding board for their ideas, and supporting them through the difficult aspects of their work.”
Bettelon supports the Coordinators of Catholic Central Elementary and High School in Springfield and Our Lady of the Rosary School in Dayton. She previously served as a Coordinator at Our Lady of the Rosary from 2015 to 2022.
As a Program Manager, Bettelon provides leadership, coaching, and supervision to Coordinators. She also builds partnerships with school leaders such as principals and helps them to utilize data to drive decision-making.
For example, if many students could use support making new friends, the principal can work with the Coordinator, teachers, and staff to come up with a range of approaches to help students forge new connections. If many families are facing food insecurity, Bettelon can help Coordinators to identify community partners and resources.
“I found that often the most impact I had with families was not in the tangible work I did, but in just being a supportive presence and friendly face in a school system that they otherwise may have found overwhelming,” Bettelon said.
“I found that often the most impact I had with families was not in the tangible work I did, but in just being a supportive presence and friendly face in a school system that they otherwise may have found overwhelming,” Bettelon said.
“Now as a Program Manager, I know a lot of the resources that are available to families that I can share with the Coordinators. I can also speak to the importance of the school-family partnership and the real impact it can make in the lives of the students.”
“I love the data-driven aspect of this work, so I will start either one of our first coaching sessions or group professional development sessions with goal-setting,” Bettelon said. “Using the data from the previous year, we can work together to identify any new trends for the students—and look to what services we can bring in to meet those emergent needs or interests—or see if there was any practice element they wanted to improve.”
At its core, Bettelon’s work centers on supporting her Coordinators. That involves “coaching,” a word she finds especially significant as a Program Manager.
“[The Program Manager role] requires the ability to look at an issue from an objective lens and see ways forward that the person who is directly experiencing the issue may not be able to perceive.
“My 2025/26 school year will have been a success if all Coordinators end it feeling that they have directly impacted the well-being of their students through the [City Connects] program and are ending the year with a sense of accomplishment and hope,” Bettelon said.
