It’s no secret that educators across the country are some of the unsung heroes of the Covid-19 pandemic. Teachers have worked tirelessly to ensure that their students maintained access to a quality education, and they’ve often dipped into their own pockets to pay for classroom materials, including necessary PPE and sanitary supplies. While school has been out for the summer, Waltonwood Cotswold was busy planning for the upcoming school year by hosting a supply drive for Billingsville-Cotswold Elementary School. The community worked together to gather supplies for the school including the following items: book bags, water bottles, black and white composition books, wide-ruled spiral notebooks, sharpened pencils, pencil boxes or pouches, pink erasers, blunt children’s scissors, markers, color pencils, folders, boys and girls hygiene supplies, children’s socks, children’s underwear and pencil sharpeners. Now, with the start of the school year quickly approaching, residents and team members recently delivered the items to the school.

“After the events of the past year and half, it’s difficult for anyone to deny the incredible dedication teachers have for their students,” said Eric Davis, executive director of Waltonwood Cotswold. “The supply drive provides us the opportunity to say thank you to educators for all they do and help to alleviate the burden that can come from prepping their classrooms. Our hope is that we can help Billingsville-Cotswold start the new year off right and that the local community will come alongside us in making this possible.”

Studies have long shown that most teachers will end up paying out of pocket for their classroom supplies. Teachers spend $500 or more each year on classroom purchases, according to the Economic Policy Institute. Since the onset of the pandemic, this cost has only increased as teachers purchased cleaning supplies and materials to facilitate virtual learning. Waltonwood Cotswold hopes that the donation will help teachers and students start the year well and save money in the process.