As Families Prepare For Back To School Shopping, SHOPA Kids In Need Foundation Lessens The Blow For Low Income School Children

Cincinnati - It is that time of year when families are feeling the pressure of what must be done before the kids go back to school. Where to shop, what to buy, and what is hot for the coming school year are some of the big questions weighing on the minds of parents and kids alike. But for many students and families, the question of "what's hot," is not the concern - it's "what do we do?" - and the increasing divide between the have's and have not's is at no time more apparent than during back to school season.

That's where the SHOPA Kids In Need Foundation comes in.

Penny Hawk, program manager of the SHOPA Kids In Need Foundation, reminds individuals to imagine the anxiety of students from low income families and how it must affect their school experience. "It's not a question of having the latest fashion or the latest gadget for these kids. It's a struggle to get the basic learning tools they need to have a successful and halfway normal learning experience when they return to the classrooms." More information can be accessed at www.kidsinneed.net.

The SHOPA Kids In Need Foundation works with generous businesses to provide basic school supplies to children nationwide to help mitigate this divide. Teachers from low income schools can "shop" at one of the 21 Kids In Need Resource Centers free of charge and provide school supplies to their students, school supplies that make a significant difference in learning, Hawk said. More than $150 million in school supplies have been distributed by the Foundation during the past decade.

"For many kids, it's not about having the latest iPod, it's about having a notepad," Hawk said. "As teachers empower young people to learn and inspire their minds, it is these basic tools that will put children on the right path for learning, and some families simply cannot afford to provide these tools. Teachers often fill this need out of their own pockets. Happily, we are in a position to help, and we want teachers to know that there is a place for them to turn.

"Our Foundation gives teachers the ability to provide school supplies to more than a million students annually all across the country. That's a million lives that have been given not just a one-time handout but a gift of learning that will serve them well for the rest of their lives," she continued. "Kids want to learn. To see the face of a child light up because someone cared enough to give them a notebook, a pencil, or a folder is truly humbling. People care, businesses care, and together we are making a positive difference."

According to CNN Money the average Midwest household will spend $404.68 this year on school supplies, down from more than $500 in 2004. In addition, teachers spend an average of $1,000 of their own money on school supplies each year.

SOURCE: SHOPA Kids In Need Foundation