By Julian A. Winters

Estimates by the Education Market Association place the out of pocket expenses teachers incur at $1.6 billion a year, or $500 each on average. An organization called Pencils and Paper that is new to the Rochester area works to provide some relief in that area.

It has the look of a big box office supply store, but Pencils and Paper offers free school supplies for teachers to give to students who have difficulty affording them.

Pencils and Paper is a volunteer program under the Jewish Family Service of Rochester that began operation in late 2017. Program coordinator Howard Grossman of JFS calls Pencils and Paper a “community volunteer effort.” It’s one of 41 projects affiliated with the national Kids in Need Foundation, whose mission is to provide school supplies to needy children.

“The idea was to try to do something to help a situation because all kids ought to get a chance.” Grossman said. “We thought we couldn’t restructure the school district but we can give pens, pencils, crayons, and glue sticks in the hands of kids in need and level the playing field a little bit.”

The need for the program comes from the poverty many local students face. According to ACT Rochester community indicators, nearly 300,000 Rochester area children live in poverty, including more than 50 percent of children within the city. When students can’t afford supplies, is when teachers often dip into their own pockets.

To help meet some of the need, Grossman and his staff created a free school supply store in the Water Tower Park at 1099 Jay St. to help teachers from at least 30 schools receive the supplies they need. The school supplies in the shop are donated from foundations they have a relationship with. Wegmans has donated shopping carts, shelving, signage, and supplies in effort to help this program serve those that are in need.

Grossman explained all the logistics of what takes place in the shop. “We will welcome about 20 teachers from high poverty schools to come in and shop,” he said. “Each of the teachers will fill up carts full of free school supplies.” The “store” is open Tuesday and Thursday afternoons and some Saturdays, according to the JFS website.

So far, Pencils and Paper has served almost 680 teachers and touched 17,000 kids. While in the process of serving the teachers and students, Grossman and his staff hope to help out every high-poverty school in the city of Rochester and then the same types of schools in the Monroe County. To qualify for the program now, a school must have 70 percent or more of its students eligible for free or reduced price lunches, which is often used as a measurement for school poverty.

In an effort to make sure this goal is accomplished, Pencils and Paper has developed a relationship with St. John Fisher College. At Fisher, a new club has already conducted supply drives and is in the process of getting affiliated by the Student Government Association. Once affiliated, club leaders hope its membership can grow as it partners with Pencils and Paper.

Josh Miles, a junior at Fisher majoring in inclusive adolescence education, helped form the new club. He found out about Pencils and Paper through his supervisor in one of the scholarship programs he is involved in. After hearing about this volunteer program, Miles and a couple of his friends were asked to create their own version of Pencils and Paper on campus to support the larger program. “The big goal is to establish annual fundraising drives so Fisher can deliver donations ideally once a semester,” Miles said.

As one of the leaders of the club, Miles has had his share of experiences with Pencils and Paper which he hopes will help him lead this club in the right direction. “It’s a great experience,” Miles said. “It’s great to give back, that’s pretty intrinsic in my values and beliefs.”

In addition to the club, Fisher students connect with Grossman and his work in other ways. He said a Fisher sociology class conducted research, including creating surveys for him and his staff, while a management class from Fisher has created a database for Pencils and Paper to help track donations.

“The Fisher workforce has been spectacular,” Grossman said. “The energy and enthusiasm from Fisher has been spectacular too.”