Naehcy 29 th Annual Conference

1. Naehcy 29th Annual Conference October 30, 2017 1:45 – 3:00 pm

2. When Funding Cuts Get in the Way, Community Partners Can Save the Day! How Community Donations Fill the Funding Gap to Support Homeless Students.

3. Key THEMES • Program Funding • Essential for Program Success • Building Your Communication Plan • Donor Engagement • Involving Your School Community • Questions

4. How Is Your Program Funded ? • Local District Funding • Title I Funds • McKinney-Vento Sub-grant • Regional Education Service Center • Other Funding Sources

5. How Would Funding cuts Impact Your Program? • Program Staff • Program Space and Office Supplies • Student and Family Programs • Student Supplies • Clothing • Holiday Sponsorship • Hygiene Items • Gift Cards

6. Funding Cuts Immediate and drastic? Or gradual and over time? • How would you prepare? • What are your options? • Feeling overwhelmed? • Can you imagine losing 25%, 50%, or 75% of your program staff? • How do you decide which program services to cut? • Are you able to streamline or outsource certain program services? • Can your district absorb some program cost through other funding sources?

7. What is Essential to the Success of Your Program? • Program Staff • Office Space • Office Equipment and Supplies • Travel Costs • Backpacks and Basic Student Supplies

8. What Are The “Extra” Services you Need For Our Students? • Additional School Supplies • Clothes • Coats • Shoes • Hygiene Kits • Blankets • Hair Cut Vouchers • Gift Cards • Student Snacks • Emergency Food Kits • Thanksgiving Baskets • Holiday Sponsorships

9. Community PartnersIt is worth the investment

10. Where do I start? • Evaluate your district and community resources • Does your district have a Community Partnerships Department • Does your district have a Partners in Education Foundation • Student Clubs • Local PTA • Regional Educational Serving Center (ESC) • Local Churches or Faith-Based Charities • Civic and Community Organizations • Police and Sheriff Departments

11. DEVOTE Time for Community Partnerships • Administrative Leadership Support • Initiating community partnerships requires an investment of time and energy • Start with what and who you know • Share your story with everyone you meet • Be patient and persistent • Always have an idea of supplies and services that community partners can assist with • The benefits will be fruitful and may yield for years to come

12. Build your program communication plan • Share your journey and make it personal • Have a story or two to share with community stakeholders that will help them to understand your passion for what you do • Provide a clear picture of what your program objectives are • Have a target goal for funding, donation of items, or support services • If a community partner is not the right fit, it is okay to say no

13. Prepare a brief and simple overview of your McKinney-Vento Homeless Education program and services • Keep an updated list of the total number of students you have served • Provide your program numbers for the past few years to show any trends in identification and needed services • A graph or chart is always great visual • Providing program data and history will help to ensure a compatible partnership Communication Tools

15. Program Statistics

16. Prepare a written proposal • Name of program • Program contact information • Description of items • Cost of items • Explain what the donation request is • List different levels of sponsorship • Provide a sample of the requested items Donor Engagement

22. Grants Provided by Community Partners • $10,000 for Emergency Food Kits • $2,000 for Emergency Food Kits • $1,000 for Emergency Food Kits • $8,500 for Hygiene Kits • $3,000 for Hygiene Kits • $1,000 for Clothing for Unaccompanied Youth for Four Consecutive Years • $100-$250 for Haircut Vouchers for Four Consecutive Years

23. School Supplies and Clothing Donations • School Supplies • Backpacks • Graphing Calculators • Blankets and Quilts for Elementary Students • Blankets for Secondary Students • Coats, Gloves, Scarves and Knitted Hats • Tennis Shoes for Unaccompanied Youth • Packages of Socks for Unaccompanied Youth

24. Hygiene Donations • Secondary Hygiene Kits • Family Hygiene Kits • Laundry Detergent and Dryer Sheet • Haircut Vouchers for Unaccompanied Youth • Tote Bags Used to Discreetly Distribute Items

25. Food Donations and Holiday Sponsorship • Snacks and Mini Food Kits • Funding for Emergency Food Kits • Thanksgiving Baskets • Holiday Sponsorships for Secondary Students • Holiday Sponsorships for Families • Community Resources for Holiday Sponsorships • Gift Cards • Funding for Gift Cards

26. Colleagues may be some of your best Community Partners • Secondary Holiday Sponsorship Program • Every middle and high school student provides a wish list with their top three choices for a gift card and a list of their favorite snacks • An email is sent out to all special program and administration staff providing information on how to sponsor a student for the holidays • Staff members contact the Homeless Liaison for a student to sponsor • Sponsorship information and student wish list is provided • All items are delivered by the Homeless Liaison to ensure confidentiality

35. Contact Information Cal Lopez McKinney-Vento Homeless Education State Coordinator Texas Education Agency 512-463-9017 Cal.Lopez@tea.texas.gov