Background
Teachers across the country spend an average of $700 out of pocket each year on classroom supplies, with some spending significantly more. In underserved communities like Modesto, this financial burden falls disproportionately on educators already working with limited resources.
Beyond the financial strain on educators, students from low-income families often arrive at school without the basic materials they need to participate fully in their education. This disparity creates an uneven playing field from day one, affecting everything from classroom participation to homework completion. Research consistently shows that students who lack basic supplies experience higher levels of stress and lower academic engagement.
Our Initiative
In August 2025, Equity Heartbeats partnered with Cub Support to organize a comprehensive school supply drive targeting Modesto City Schools. Our goal was twofold: to alleviate the financial burden on teachers and to ensure that students across the district had equal access to the tools they need to succeed.
Our team assembled over 50 comprehensive supply packages. Each package was carefully curated to include essential classroom items: notebooks in various sizes, pencils, pens, colored pencils, markers, folders and binders, scissors, glue sticks, hand sanitizer, tissues, and other materials teachers had identified as most needed.
Distribution and Impact
The supply packages were distributed to 15 schools across the Modesto City Schools district, reaching elementary, middle, and high school levels. Our distribution strategy prioritized schools with the highest percentage of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch, ensuring that resources reached the communities with the greatest need.
In total, over 4,000 individual supplies were distributed, supporting more than 1,000 students across the district. Teachers reported that the supplies helped reduce their out-of-pocket expenses and allowed them to focus more on instruction rather than worrying about whether their students had the materials they needed.
The response from educators was overwhelmingly positive. Several teachers shared that receiving these supplies at the start of the school year made a meaningful difference in their classroom setup and allowed them to redirect their personal funds toward other classroom needs or their own families.
Schools Served
Supply packages were delivered to the following schools throughout Modesto City Schools:
- Beard Elementary
- Bret Harte Elementary
- Burbank Elementary
- Evelyn Hanshaw Middle School
- Fairview Elementary
- Franklin Elementary
- Joseph A. Gregori High School
- La Loma Jr. High
- Lakewood Elementary
- Mark Twain Junior High
- Robertson Road Elementary
- Rose Avenue Elementary
- Shackelford Elementary
- Sonoma Elementary
- Wilson Elementary
Looking Ahead
The success of this supply drive has laid the groundwork for future education-focused initiatives. We are committed to expanding this program in future years, reaching more schools and providing more comprehensive support to educators and students throughout the Central Valley.
Education equity remains a core pillar of Equity Heartbeats' mission. Every student deserves the opportunity to learn and succeed, regardless of their family’s economic circumstances This supply drive represents one step in our broader commitment to removing barriers to educational success in underserved communities.