Four Helpful Tips to Acquire School Supplies

Wednesday, August 30, 2017 by Cyber Acoustics

It’s the first day of school and your students arrive into their new classroom to a veritable superstore of supplies – there’s a plethora of pens and pencils; a profusion of paper; a mass of markers; a flood of folders. If they need it, it’s there. You lost an eraser? Here, take three. Oh, how September provides a sufficiency of supplies.

But as the leaves fall and the seasons turn, the bounty slowly recedes. That drawer of pencil crayons is becoming dry. Rulers just seem to vanish. Binders? They have you in a bind.

There are months left in the school year, but you know what supplies you have remaining won’t be enough, and the school’s budget for supplies has already been maxed out. What to do?

While some teachers have been known to generously reach into their own pockets to purchase supplies their students need, that’s not a tenable situation for everyone. Fortunately, there are options available.

PTOs

Most schools have a Parent-Teacher Organization, and they can be an invaluable resource. Involvement and financial flexibility varies by school, but most PTOs run fundraising events throughout the year, and often keep a fund available where possible for such emergencies. They are a great option to check in with first for assistance.

If you don’t have any luck there, there are still numerous possibilities. At that point, your best option will be to hit the Internet.

School Fundraising & Donation Sites

There are a number of websites dedicated to providing fundraising assistance for teachers, and one of the most prominent is donorschoose.org. The site was founded by a teacher in 2000, and remains one of the most recognizable in the field. Teachers create an account, set a fundraising goal and explain what they need donations for, while possible benefactors peruse the site to determine where they want to spend their money. It’s trustworthy and comes with name recognition, and is a great place to try to raise the funds you need.

There is also the Kids in Need Foundation, where people sign up to be monthly donors with the money going toward their goal of “empowering all kids to be successful in school”. They partner with resource centers throughout the country to allocate funds from there. It can be useful to check their site to see if your school is located in one of the areas they service.

Other options include adoptaclassroom.org, digitalwish.com, artsonia.com, and even starting a GoFundMe page.

Waste Not, Want Not

For everything we have, much of it goes unused, but this can be a benefit to teachers needing supplies. There are several organizations that collect unused items from businesses then donate them to schools or non-profit organizations, with the businesses getting a tax write-off in exchange.

One of the best options in this field is the website naeir.org. They receive unsold goods from retailers, then donate them to schools and non-profit organizations. Their website has a section specifically for teachers with free registration. Similar organizations include sustainablesurplus.com, www.excessaccess.org and wastetocharity.org.

Retailers

It can be easy to get overlooked in the digital realm, but it’s hard to be overlooked when you’re somewhere in person. Many retailers have gift card donation programs, where customers can purchase gift cards to be redeemed by teachers or schools who need extra resources. It could pay (literally) to stop by a few of your local retail outlets to see if they have any such programs in place.

You can also get a copy of your school's Tax Exempt Certificate, make copies and visit your local big box stores, thrift stores, local arts council, hotels, frame shops, and craft supply store. If you ask to speak with a manager or the owner, by having the letter in hand you may find success by asking for donations of any broken, used, or donated supplies. With a copy of your school's certificate, they get to write off the full value of their donation.

When the school supplies start to vanish, it can seem like a daunting proposition to acquire the items students need to be successful, but there are options out there.

And when it comes to device protection and classroom audio solutions, Cyber Acoustics has everything your school or district needs. From custom cases and Bluetooth speakers to headsets and headphones, our industry-leading products help teachers and students make the most of the learning experience. For more information, check out our product catalogs, and request a product sample today.