NEWS

RTS: Besides the lack of school supplies in our local schools, what other educational disparities have you observed in Title I Schools in our county? 

McCollum: We focus our work primarily on underserved students. Over 60% of students in Hillsborough County qualify for free and/or reduced-price lunch, so they need our support. We see a big disparity in literacy rates, especially among students in high need schools. This is one of the issues HEF is working to address. 

While we do not directly help to alleviate food insecurity, we take this factor into account when we determine which students and schools to aid. Our nonprofit partners, including Metropolitan Ministries and Feeding Tampa Bay, target food insecurity directly. HEF connects students and families who need food with said partnership organizations. 

RTS: As the curators of the Teaching Tools Resource Center, HEF knows a lot about the dire need for school supplies. Please tell me, in what ways are students and teachers impacted by a lack of school supplies in the classroom?

McCollum: To us, school supplies are the foundation for students to be able to do their classwork, they cannot succeed without these items. HEF focuses on students that qualify for free and/or reduced-price lunch, because their families may not be able to afford school supplies. Children may feel discouraged when they see other students with brand new school supplies when they themselves don’t have any, and self-consciousness is a big distraction that can adversely affect one’s education. Each year, HEF directly gives school supplies to teachers from Title I Schools through our Teaching Tools Resource Center at 2306 N. Howard Ave., Tampa, FL 33607. Nearly 90% of these teachers report back that the school supplies resulted in educational gains within their classroom. 

RTS: As a nonprofit, have you noted what our state, Florida, is doing to significantly advance education, if anything?

McCollum: We do try to keep an eye on state-led educational initiatives and we appreciate what we see. The state continues to value organizations like HEF. HEF’s visible work and gains have helped our lawmakers to increase support and funding for education foundations all over the state. In the past year, Florida has increased the budget that supports education foundations like us. Since HEF goes out into the community to directly do good, the state notices. Right now, HEF is looking at changes in standardized testing and is doing more to support teachers. When the opportunity arises, we send representatives to the state capitol to advocate to our lawmakers on behalf of schools and students. 

RTS: What other organizations and nonprofits do you collaborate with in order to increase impact and aid your efforts?

McCollum: We collaborate with community partners to make the Teaching Tools Resource Center a reality. HEF is currently in our supply drive season (July-September). During this season, HEF collaborates with different partners to host and support school supply drives around the county. The school supplies are ultimately sent to the Teaching Tools Resource Center, where they are then distributed to teachers from Title I Schools in Hillsborough County. Last year, HEF had nearly 200 community partners, which helped us throughout the year. We were able to give out $4.1 million in school supplies last year. This would not have been possible without these collaborative efforts. 

RTS: Please describe 1-2 initiatives and/or programs that HEF runs, and what education based issues these programs aim to alleviate.

McCollum: At the start of the pandemic, HEF launched a program called the Digital Equity initiative, which aims to decrease the homework gap by providing students with access to devices and internet service so that they do not fall behind in their school work. Often, underserved students do not always have access to devices or the internet at all, so HEF has stepped in to level the playing field. We also encourage families to use their device not just for schoolwork, but also so they can expand their horizons and conduct job searches. The Digital Equity initiative has served over 3000 families to date. We place these devices with families permanently. Once we realized that providing devices alone was not enough, we stepped in to help the families learn more about the devices. HEF has a team of staff to help students and families understand how to use their device, so they can get the most out of it. Now, we also have an ongoing effort to help the recipient families care for their device. 

Another important program we run is the Take Stock in Children mentorship program. This program focuses on underserved students, and takes in students between 7th and 9th grade. These students are assigned a mentor to help them navigate high school. Upon their high school graduation, the students are guaranteed a 2 year college scholarship. These students are so bright, and they need support and encouragement as they navigate high school. That’s where HEF comes in. This program is meant to build future leaders in the community, the future leaders of tomorrow. 

RTS: Feel free to add anything else you’d like people to know about HEF, education based issues, or students! 

McCollum: I would like people to know that HEF’s mission is to strengthen public education in Hillsborough County Public Schools. We look at our work through a lens of equity, because we want to level the playing field for all students. Hillsborough County Public Schools is the 7th largest public school system in the country, so there is no shortage of need or problems here. That’s why HEF concentrates our resources and energy towards the students that need it most. We believe that if you invest in each child no matter what, they will have the opportunity to succeed.

RTS: Big thanks to the Hillsborough Education Foundation, which has consistently supported us in our efforts to promote educational equity in our community. We hope that others will learn from you more about educational disparities and how to address them, just as we have. Please go to https://educationfoundation.com/ to learn more about how you can get involved or to donate.