Troy School District Teachers Collect Backpacks

Troy School District Teachers Collect Backpacks, Supplies for Next Year’s Students

The end of the school year is a busy time for Troy teachers, with wrapping things up, giving students that one last push to the next grade, and saying goodbye to children they have worked with and gotten to know all year. Next fall seems a million miles away.

But as is tradition, the members of the Troy Educational Association—teachers in the Troy School District—celebrate the end of the school year by looking forward, and collect about 100 backpacks and supplies for next year’s students. The backpacks will be distributed in August/September, in cooperation with Troy People Concerned, a nonprofit information and referral agency that provides outreach and connections between families in need and resources that can help.

“As teachers, we know what kinds of supplies our students need in order to be successful,” said Boulan Park Middle School teacher and TEA Vice President Cindy Shankin. “We shop the sales all year round, so we can provide the most stuff; the kinds of things the kids want,” said Angela Clemence, Wattles Elementary School teacher and TEA Public Relations Trustee. “We have different backpacks for the different grade levels. A high school kid is not going to be happy with a Dora the Explorer backpack, but a first grader might.”

Students are screened by TPC, and supplies will continue to be collected over the summer, so the backpacks can be loaded in plenty of time for the start of the 2018/2019 school year. “The looks on the kids’ faces are priceless,” concluded Jennifer Trice, Smith teacher and TEA building rep. “They want to fit in and be just like everybody else, and a small thing like having a cool backpack with all the right supplies can set them up for success starting with their first day in the Fall.”

If you would like to contribute to this campaign, with either backpacks or supplies, please contact Angela Clemence, at aclemence@troy.k12.mi.us or 248-823-3417.

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Photos courtesy of the Troy School District: L to R: Angela Clemence, Cindy Shankin, Jennifer Trice