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With Miami-Dade County’ Public Schools’ 337,000 public school students returning to classrooms this month, The Education Fund calls on the community to help stock teachers’ supply closets through its annual Back-to-School Drive.
The Education Fund Ocean Bank Center for Educational Materials requests donations of basic school supplies, including pencils, notebooks, crayons, glue sticks, tissues, and hand sanitizer, through the end of August.
The drive addresses a growing financial burden on educators. According to the National Education Association, teachers spend between $500 and $750 of their own money annually on classroom supplies.
“At a time when teachers are already stretching their personal budgets to support their students, The Education Fund Ocean Bank Center for Educational Materials provides a vital resource,” said Linda Lecht, President of The Education Fund. “Our Back-to-School Drive ensures that financial barriers don’t prevent any Miami-Dade County public school students from having the tools they need to learn and succeed.
Leilani Echezabal, a Miami-Dade County Public Schools (M-DCPS) teacher said, “I work at a low-income school, so the kids can’t even afford book bags. The best part of this is when you see the kids’ faces. When they open [the bags], that smile means everything.”
Art teacher Wilson Mape of Hubert O. Sibley K-8 Academy said access to free supplies transforms his teaching.
“When you teach art on a shoestring budget, you learn how to make something out of nothing, but these funds let me do more than ‘get by’,” Mape said.
The Ocean Bank Center, which supports all 18,000-plus teachers across M-DCPS, provides traditional supplies alongside unusual materials for hands-on lessons, art resources, and classroom furnishings.
Community members can help by making financial donations or purchasing supplies directly through The Education Fund’s Amazon Wishlist. Visit educationfund.org/backtoschool for donation options.
Established in 1993 after Hurricane Andrew, the Center was the first school supply warehouse in the country. The 11,000-square-foot facility has distributed more than $28 million in supplies, benefiting more than 4 million students. Ocean Bank – Member FDIC.
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