Michigan Families for Fair Care Gives Away Backpacks For Students This Back-To-School Season

MACOMB, Michigan— Sunday, Michigan Families for Fair Care in partnership with State Senator Stephanie Chang and State Representative Donavan McKinney held a backpack drive that brought over $4,000 worth of backpacks to community members across the district.   

Congress is considering massive cuts to public education funding through an appropriations bill that would threaten cuts to Title I and remove over 2,000 teachers from classrooms that serve low-income students in Michigan. Students are the first to face the impacts of these harmful cuts. That same legislation would go on to eliminate English Language Acquisition programs and cut vital academic services to over 95,000 students in the state. 

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Families can expect to spend, on average, nearly $900 on back-to-school shopping — the second-highest expected total on record — on items like clothing, shoes, school supplies, and electronics. Additionally, more than 75 percent of parents feel the amount of back-to-school spending is too much, ahead of the new school year. 

Michiganders, in particular, are lamenting the high cost of basic school supplies. For low-income families, this financial burden is even more challenging. And, as the cost of living outpaces wages, nearly half of Michigan children live in households that struggle to pay for basic necessities like housing, food, childcare, and transportation.

Michigan Families for Fair Care Executive Director, Steve Lawson

“I am proud of the impact events like these have on  students and parents in the district. Soon, Congress will have to decide spending levels for the upcoming fiscal year, and Michigan Families for Fair Care believes that it is time to educate constituents about policies that would make massive cuts to K-12 public schools and threaten teachers’ jobs. We hope to educate the public about potential federal budget cuts to public schools, and will continue to stand with this community and make our voices heard.”

State Representative Donavan McKinney:

“The time to advocate for investments in Michiganders’ education is now. Yesterday, we connected parents and students with a plethora of amazing resources. This generation of students and teachers have faced high costs of school supplies and family budgets being stretched.  Anything we can do to make their life just a little bit easier is not just worth our time, but necessary for their success.”