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AboutUs
ABOUT US
The Need
Our Mission
To ensure that children living in poverty start school with the tools needed to succeed.
Can you imagine starting your first day of school without a paper and pencil to take notes, without a binder to organize your loose-leaf paper? For the roughly 12.95 million children living in poverty in the United States, this is too often the reality.
Most low-income children start school without the basic tools needed to learn, and getting school supplies can make all the difference for their future success. In fact, studies show that living in poverty during early childhood contributes to lower levels of academic performance beginning in kindergarten and extending through elementary and high school.
Parents and caregivers experience considerable stress at the prospect of equipping their kids with backpacks and school supplies, which can cost upwards of $75. For families in need, school supplies are a luxury, and may mean a family’s choice between paying the electric bill, and spending on their child’s classroom necessities. No one should have to make that choice.
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Our Vision
Supplies for Success envisions an equal education for all in which no student begins the school year empty-handed, and disadvantaged children in the United States, regardless of race, religion or ethnicity, do not start behind.
With the help of our committed volunteer network and generous donors, Supplies for Success provides backpacks filled with age-appropriate school supplies before the first day of school, so that underprivileged children can start school feeling confident, looking like their peers, and prepared to learn. We also distribute art-filled CareKits for young learners.
What We Do
We distribute supplies for success to nonprofit organizations including homeless and domestic violence shelters, health and human service organizations, government agencies, camps, churches, synagogues and schools.
We host and/or facilitate backpack assembly events where volunteers come together to fill backpacks with essential supplies. Supplies for Success also sends pre-filled backpacks and CareKits directly to community partners for distribution to the students they serve locally. We work with tried and true suppliers from whom we purchase the supplies and the backpacks at below wholesale pricing with funds raised through Donations.
How We Do It!
When kids have their own backpacks and supplies on the first day of school, their self-esteem increases, they are more likely to attend school, get better grades, behave better and have a positive outlook about school. They start the school year with smiles, hope and confidence and are less likely to feel marginalized from their more fortunate peers. Even the most basic learning tools can set a child on the path to success.
The Impact
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