Over 50 schools from across Derbyshire have been unveiled as the first Derby County Partner Schools.
The educational establishments have committed to the Derby County in the Community scheme which gives them benefits from the Rams' programme and will see them support other club activities.
They were at Pride Park Stadium on Wednesday for the official launch of the project and to meet with DCITC representatives.
Community manager Simon Carnall said the event was a celebration of the ongoing partnerships that DCITC enjoys with schools.
He said: "Derby County Partner Schools status signifies a commitment between Derby County Football Club and the host school.
"It is important that, as a football club, we give a lot back to the community through its schools.
"This is a priority scheme whereby if they want after-school clubs, if they want curriculum coaching, if they want to utilise the resources of the football club, they get that as a partner school."
In return, the partner schools will support DCITC commercial initiatives that will help the community programme with its ongoing development.
The launch saw over 50 schools receive their framed certificates to confirm their partner status but Mr Carnall is hoping to double that figure.
He said: "We have got an initial 50 schools here but hopefully we will have over 100 by the time the new academic year starts in September.
"Our staff are out there talking to head teachers and the School Sports Partnership about what Derby County Partner Schools status brings.
"Hopefully, if we can sign up some new schools, it will enable us to bring in some new staff and increase our capacity.
"What we have realised is that schools generally are supportive of Derby County and they enjoy the work we do with them.
"They want to expand on that and the Derby County Partner Schools scheme is an ideal way to do so."
John Vicars, Derby County's vice-president of operations, said the launch of Derby County Partner Schools was another string to the community scheme's bow.
"There are many initiatives we run that are outside of what you would term pure football skills and coaching delivery," he added.
"We have got community cohesion initiatives running in the city of Derby, and we have already got 50 people signed up to an initiative with the Premier League and Derbyshire Constabulary where we are trying to reduce the amount of anti-social behaviour and public order incidents.
"We have a very successful Hat-Trick project in the Derwent ward of Derby where disaffected children are coming in to the centre and getting first-class football coaching.
"As well as that we also run a disablity football team and a mental health football team.
"The core delivery programme from the community scheme is football coaching but you can see how we engage with many groups of people in different ways.
"The strapline for Derby County in the Community is participate, develop and achieve, and that is exactly what we as a club aim to do."
You can find out more about the operations of Derby County in the Community here with a full video feature to follow later on Thursday.
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