Dr. CJ Huff, former superintendent of Joplin Schools, was tasked with improving graduation rates in 2010, within his struggling school community. No longer just a school issue, low graduation rates were identified as a community concern. Like so many communities across the nation, many Joplin students struggled with poverty and often a lack of parental involvement. Teachers spent much of their time, and often their own resources, meeting students’ basic needs. This session will discuss how the school and community applied a "Maslow Matters" focus to ensure student success. Since the early days of what would become the Bright Futures program, dozens of school communities have followed his lead.