Back to School Teacher Supply Drive

To ensure student success, children need to start the school year with the basic supplies needed to actively participate in class. From paper and pencils to scissors and crayons, organizations community-wide step up to assist with local school supply drives and giveaways with the hopes of providing students a firm foundation for learning. 

However, supporting teachers is also critical to student achievement.  The Education Market Association says that virtually all teachers pay out of pocket for supplies. On average, most teachers spend nearly $500 each year, and one in 10 spend $1,000 or more. All told, a total of $1.6 billion in school supply costs is shifted from parents — or, increasingly, from cash-strapped school districts — onto teachers themselves.

For teachers in lower-income schools, the burden can be even greater. Within the past year, Communities in Schools conducted a survey of 700 teachers and found that more than 90 percent must buy school supplies to help low-income students whose parents can’t afford even basic things like pens and notebooks.

In response to this need, BNI and the BNI Foundation’s Business Voices initiative will host a Teacher Supply Drive to collect classroom supplies, gift cards, and donations to minimize the amount that teachers personally spend to equip their classrooms with the basics.  Donations such as boxes of tissues, paper towels, crayons, loose leaf paper, glue sticks, pencils, pens, hand sanitizer, retailer gift cards, and more will be collected at participating BNI Chapter Meetings now through August 1, 2018.  Supplies will sorted be delivered to BNI partner schools in Orleans and Jefferson Parishes in early August. 

How can you help?  Here are some ideas for helping to make the BNI Teacher Supply Drive a success:

• When buying school supplies for your own children, pick up a few additional supplies to donate at your next BNI meeting.

• Ask your coworkers, colleagues, clients, friends, and family members to participate by donating supplies to the BNI drive.

• Use your social media networks – Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, even LinkedIn, to generate donations to the Teacher Supply Drive. Share BNI’s social media posts to encourage participation or create your own.

In addition to participating BNI chapter meetings, donations for the BNI Teacher Supply Drive can also be delivered to BNI main office, 3500 N. Causeway Boulevard, Suite 116. Call (504) 834-5264 to schedule the delivery of your donation.