With the cost of gas, groceries and more skyrocketing, parents and teachers in the Golden Triangle are feeling the burn as they head to buy school supplies for the new school year.
Elementary students do not require the same school supplies as middle school students, and middle school students do not require the same as high school students, though the difference is less so than in elementary school.
Many parents in the area all said the same of school supply prices: most of those have not risen, but what can be purchased is being affected by other rising costs, namely gas.
Samantha Cyr has three children at New Hope Elementary School – one in fifth grade, one in second grade and one in kindergarten. Cyr is trying to buy supplies for her children while also paying for general living expenses.
“The prices have fluctuated a little on school supplies, but the lists for what each child needs has definitely shortened since I was a kid,” Cyr said. “I’m dealing the best I can with school supplies on top of rising gas and grocery prices. It definitely doesn’t make things easy, especially with three kids in school, but we make it work.”
Parents like Michael Strong are picking up extra hours at work and sacrificing vacations and other outside activities to be able to afford all of their children’s supplies this school year. Strong is a father of two children who are students in the West Point Consolidated School District.
“(I’m going to have to) work overtime and spend less on recreation,” Strong said. “Sticking to the list (given by schools and teachers) is important because as a parent you don’t want your child to be embarrassed or get a bad grade for the lack of anything prohibiting them from completing an assignment.”
Amanda Chaltry is a mother of three school-aged children – two attend Annunciation Catholic School and one attends Heritage Academy. She said she has seen some price differences from prior years for certain supplies like crayons, markers and paper. In order to buy school supplies for her three children, she is buying a little at a time.
“We will buy the next few weeks,” Chaltry said. “We usually go buy all at once, but we will have to break it up and budget out each week if we can and how much that week we can buy. … Being at a private school, special classes like Spanish and art ask for supplies as well as the classroom teacher. I try my best to stick to what (the lists) ask for because they have a method as teachers and know what will work best for the students through the year in their class.”
Local supply drives
School districts, nonprofits and churches are coming together to alleviate some financial stress on parents who are having a hard time purchasing school supplies.
Supply drives are one of the prime ways parents who are strapped for cash provide their children with the supplies they need for success in school.
In Starkville, the staff at the Discovery Center in the Starkville-Oktibbeha Consolidated School District recognizes the extra financial strain on parents and guardians within the district, so they organize a Back to School bash nearly every year. With the COVID-19 pandemic still affecting the country, the bash was a drive-thru event.
Students in the SOCSD start the school year on July 26 as part of the new modified school year, and Discovery Center had to adjust accordingly.
“Usually we have the school supply drive on the last Saturday of July before school starts,” Roy Ann Bell, Program Manager of Project Care at the Discovery Center, said. “This year we had to move it up to the 16th to allow parents enough time before the new school year begins.”
Other schools don’t begin until August, so there will be supply drives such as the Junior Auxiliary of West Point’s Stuff the Bus.
JA’s event will have school supplies going directly to the schools for teachers to divvy up and assist their students who aren’t able, according to Allie Judkins, the schools chair for JA of West Point. The nonprofit organization will take donations at Walmart on July 29 from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. and July 30 from 8 a.m. to noon, and the club is accepting monetary and physical donations.
JA of West Point also has boxes available at Dollar General, Dollar Tree and CVS for those to drop off donations throughout the rest of the month.
JA of Starkville will also hold a Stuff the Bus event on July 23 at Chick-fil-A from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and July 30 at Walmart, Chick-fil-A and Kroger in Starkville from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. The club also has an array of local businesses where supplies can be dropped off at, including Mitchell Eye Care, Belle’s Nails, B-Unlimited and The Greater Starkville Development Partnership office.
Revive Church in Columbus is hosting a completely free Back to School Mega Health Fair and Block Party on July 30 at 10 a.m. at the James Terrace Apartments on Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive. There will be free book bags, school supplies, haircuts, physicals, scoliosis exams, lunch, snacks and activities while supplies last.
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Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 45 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
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