For families struggling financially to provide school supplies for their students, the South Central Missouri Community Action Agency will be hosting its annual School Readiness Event on August 8.
The event is designed to help provide school supplies and health screenings for families who have a hard time paying for such back-to-school necessities. The event will be held from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. at the Black River Coliseum.
Ginger Hill, Community Services Director for SCMCAA, said the organization puts on these kinds of events in seven counties around the area and last year helped 2,046 students between eight events get ready to return to school. Butler County is the biggest event they have, she said, with last year serving 856 students. She expects a similar number this year as well.
“They are designed to help alleviate financial stress for low-income families in purchasing the school supplies and services their children need to go back to school,” Hill said. “We try to make it so that low-income children can enter school on the same footing as their peers.”
She encourages parents to pre-register online to make the process faster, but that isn’t required. If attending an event, Hill said parents should bring the social security card for their students.
The funding for the event comes through a Community Services Block Grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services provided through the Missouri Department of Social Services, Family Support Division. SCMCAA applies for the grant annually. However, Hill also emphasized the importance of the community and community partners coming out to support the event as well.
“We couldn’t do it without the help of our communities,” she said. “Everybody just kind of works together, helps to set it up, helps to clean it up.
Hill said the events started several years ago after a needs assessment — which takes place every three years — and SCMCAA saw the high number of families on food stamps in the area as well as a high rate of students registered for free and reduced lunch.
“You get the school supply list and it can be very disconcerting when you get that list and start adding it up in your head how much that’s going to cost your family,” Hill said. “We did these as a way to help relieving that burden for families, at least a portion of the burden.”
Hill said the program looks at the 125% federal poverty guideline. Under that, a family of four would need to make less than $32,188 a year.
She said that if parents would like to know if their student qualifies for the event, they can call the Poplar Bluff office at 573-785-4727 to inquire. They can also call to pre-register for the event.