JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Teachers aren’t only making lesson plans for students these days. They are digging into their own pockets for supplies they need for students and the classroom.
In many cases, the district doesn’t provide supplies, so paying out of pocket is the only way to make sure the kids have what they need.
Teachers buying their own supplies isn’t a new phenomenon, but they are paying more out of pocket to meet their classroom needs, according to a pair of recent surveys.
Office Depot surveyed 1,000 teachers and found -- on average -- teachers spent $320 setting up their own classrooms.
On top of that, the National Education Association, the largest teacher’s union in the U.S., says teachers will spend more than $800 out of pocket this school year.
“And so for teachers, that’s roughly one to two paychecks every school year they’re spending on buying supplies and stepping into the gap for these students,” said Corey Gordon, CEO of Kids in Need Foundation.
Following its survey, Office Depot raised $1.7 million to help more than 900 public schools get brand-new school supplies.