Students in need can rely on school for food, shelter and other resources each day. With a two-week break for holidays looming, schools around the Kansas City area started planning early to ensure kids would be taken care of.
Jessica Smith, who coordinates homeless services for Kansas City, Kansas Public Schools, said it’s difficult for students to learn when they don't know when they’ll eat next or if they will get a Christmas present this year.
“It's about the students feeling special, the students feeling love, the students feeling important, and getting some of their basic needs met,” Smith said. “Because if they don't eat, if they don't have life, if they don't have somewhere to sleep, how do we expect them to learn?”
Here’s a look at the toys, meals and resources communities will provide for families over the holiday break.
Kansas City, Kansas Public Schools
Smith said the district’s unaccompanied high school students, or students who are living without a parent or guardian, are her special project — especially during the holiday season.
Her team checks on 80 of those students every other day during the school year. Ahead of the two-week break, they ensure each student is in a safe place. They also make sure their Christmas gifts include hygiene items, snacks and other basic necessities.
Smith said the school district has more than 300 families who qualify for McKinney-Vento services, which means they could be homeless, living in a motel or “doubled up” with another family. The school district works with Avenue of Life to help manage its caseload and connect families with housing, food and other resources.
Food and housing are the two biggest barriers for Smith’s vulnerable families. Along with holiday gifts, families often receive gift cards to grocery stores to use over the break.
The school district also reaches out to families in hotels, where it may be difficult to store meals, to ensure they have shelf-friendly food. Smith's team also lets them know about community kitchens in Wyandotte County, including Cross-Lines.
Smith said more families live in motels in the winter as community resources and families’ finances stretch thin.
“They're trying to save up because they want to provide Christmas for their babies, they’re trying to save up for Thanksgiving food, and so money's going different places,” Smith said.
The district started having families complete holiday wish lists in October. Smith then started reaching out to donors. Different organizations, churches, companies and departments work together to “adopt” families or donate money so students can go shopping.
Families in need can find resources on the school district’s HELP me app, a 24/7 application automatically downloaded on student’s devices. Students can anonymously request help with bullying, food, shelter or mental health assistance.
North Kansas City Schools
The 27 social workers in North Kansas City Schools identify students and families who need help. By October, school community resource specialists know which families struggle, and start to figure out who needs assistance ahead of the holidays.
Janelle Porter, assistant superintendent of student services, said they want to ensure families have enough food.
“If kids don't have what they need, if they don't have running water, if they don't have food in the fridge, if they don't have the just the support that they need… it's unlikely that they're going to get to school every day and find success,” Porter said.
Porter said Feed Northland Kids distributes food once a month to district families, packing in extra in December since kids are home more often. The district also works with St. James Church to connect families to a food pantry and holiday meals for Thanksgiving and Christmas.
The Clay County Sheriff's Department and other local law enforcement agencies provide food boxes and holiday gifts through “Shop with a Cop” and other programs.
“You don't think of the Northland necessarily as being super high-needs, but we do have need north of the river,” Porter said. “We have a community that's very invested in making sure that even though we may not get a majority of the resources, we're taking care of the people that live in this community.”
Porter said families can also receive housing and utility support from the Salvation Army, Metropolitan Lutheran Ministries and Northland Neighborhoods.
Porter recommends families in need over the holidays reach out directly to their school community resource specialist or call United Way’s 211 hotline.
Lee’s Summit School District
The Lee’s Summit School District has an an online community resource guide so families can check what resources are available throughout the year.
Damian Moses, the district-wide school community liaison, said those include Lee's Summit Community Church, Lee's Summit Social Services and Abundant Life. Coldwater of Lee's Summit also hosts a clothes closet and food bank year-round.
Moses said schools know which families are in need and whether they are homeless, facing an emergency or lost housing due to circumstances like a fire. He said it’s important to have resources in the community to connect families to food and adequate clothing in the colder months.
“It's very heartwarming to know there's so many giving people within this community,” Moses said. ”There are a lot of needs in this community, and without those resources, a lot of those families go without.”
Families can sign up for holiday help with “Toys for Tots” and “Sack it for Santa.” Students from Lee’s Summit high schools also collected food and clothing donations at their "Freeze Out" event earlier this month for local charities.
Moses said students need more than their most basic needs met to thrive.
“When we talk about clothing, all those different things, kids want to be able to fit in. They want to feel normal,” Moses said. “It's not that they want to have to use the resources, but the need of the resources helps them to feel more important, more involved, cared for.”
