Program offers free school supplies to teachers

ROCHESTER, N.Y. (WROC) — The Pencils and Paper program offers teachers the chance to get some school supplies for free.

The program aims to get supplies to students in schools with a higher percentage of poverty. This is to ensure that these kids have the tools they need to learn. Any school district in Monroe County with at least 50% of students with reduced or free lunch is eligible to participate. The program has these shopping days each semester.

“We hear from our teachers that once they bring those supplies back they can really focus on the kids learning and not focus on what the kids might need,” said Carly Layton, vice president of marketing and development.

The process is like any shopping trip. Teachers grab a cart, fill it with supplies, and check out — they can get up to $1,400 worth. The teachers News 8’s Oran Spitzer spoke with said they spend anywhere from $300 to $700 on school supplies, out-of-pocket, so a program like this is a big help.

“Filling our classrooms every fall requires us to dig into our own pockets,” said Colleen Spano a kindergarten teacher, “this is like winning the lottery for teachers this is wonderful all the great things in my cart today will be used highly in my classroom.”

Kaci Smith, a K-5 English as a second language teacher says, she still plans to buy more things for her classroom, like a carpet, even though she was able to snag plenty of essentials. “A lot of the things that are in my cart right now I probably would have bought myself, so it’s really exciting to see so much available for teachers,” she said.

You can donate supplies or funds to the Pencils and Paper program anytime. They even have an Amazon wishlist for those who want to help but don’t know what to choose. Layton says monetary donations tend to go a long way since with a $1 donation they are able to buy $2-$3 worth of supplies.

“So, instead of somebody going out and buying a box of crayons for $5, give us $5 and we might be able to get 10 boxes,” said Layton.

The program has these shopping days each semester.

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