PREPARED BY: Healthy Schools
DATE: September 26, 2024
SUBJECT: Back to School Partner Collaboration
BACKGROUND/PURPOSE
The United Way Backpacks for Success Program began in 2017 with the goal of alleviating the financial burden for purchasing school supplies for disadvantaged families in Windsor and Essex County (WEC). The program ensured that school aged children and youth had the essentials for a successful start to the school year. In February 2023, ProsperUS (of which the WECHU is an active member) engaged 36 high priority residents from their Community Action Networks (CAN) who had all previously accessed the existing Backpacks for Success for Program. Using an equity lens, and with community input from residents with lived experience, a variety of solutions were developed for future backpack distribution. As a result, the redesigned program focused on a “wrap around” school readiness event.
Led by the United Way, ProsperUS, and the WECHU two events were planned in priority neighbourhoods (one in Leamington and one in Windsor) both with expanded hours to allow greater access to accessible locations on the same day. Improvements to the event included information focused on school readiness for children, youth and their families. This included access to food, menstrual products, free back to school haircuts, bike safety with helmet fitting and health screening with connections to health care providers.
DISCUSSION
Using an equity lens, and to ensure bags went to priority neighbourhoods as much as possible, a targeted distribution approach was used and led by the team at United Way. Two events were held in August 2024. One at 33 Princess St., Leamington (Central 33 Building and adjacent Dieppe Park) and the other at 155 Wyandotte St., Windsor (Adie Knox Arena and Community Centre & Wilson Park).
- All service providers brought information to distribute along with giveaways and activities to engage students and their caregivers.
- Families were connected to resources that would assist them during the entire school year and beyond.
- Multicultural Council of Windsor and Essex County and South Essex Community Council provided translation support in multiple languages.
- To encourage interaction with service providers, a stamp card was created, and service providers stamped the card when students visited the booths and accessed onsite services. Everyone with a fully stamped card was entered to win one of five prize bags filled with a grocery gift card and products from participating First Choice Hair Cutters.
- A total of 1526 back packs were distributed to 654 households in Windsor with an estimated attendance of 3500-4000 residents.
- In Leamington, 590 backpacks were given to 275 households with approximately 450-500 people in attendance.
- 600 free haircuts were given between both events.
- The WECHU had staff from Healthy Schools including immunization for records review and immunizations were provided onsite at the Leamington event. Oral health screening, appointment bookings and information was available on site at the events as well as a variety of health promotion information for participants.
After the success of this year’s events, the plan is for the WECHU to continue our partnership in the next school year. The planning group will be convening service providers from this year’s event and any other interested partners later this year to discuss how we can continue to improve the event in the future to better serve this populations as well as the potential to expand to other locations. Currently an evaluation survey is being developed for registered participants that will provide additional information and data.