The first day of school is less than two weeks away for some and already teachers are making final preparations for their classrooms.
For Jamie Boemer, getting her 1st grade classroom ready for the first day of school is not as easy as A, B, C.
“I probably spend a thousand or more out of my own pocket a year. I just want to make sure every child feels at home and loved,” Boemer said.
This year, the cost of school supplies is up significantly with inflation soaring to more than 12% in Georgia.
“So, I started seeing this clear the list and my husband showed it to me, and he was like, Jaime, these people are just buying presents for teachers and I was like, oh wow,” Boemer said.
So, she put her school wish list on Amazon like so many other teachers have done and within no time total strangers started buying supplies for her classroom.
“It was like Christmas every day. All of a sudden, packages started coming to my door and I was like who is this from, oh my gosh this is from so and so, little Joe, this is from Lucy. It was amazing,” Boemer said.
It’s a cost-cutting trend supported by many educators including her principal at Holly Springs Elementary School in Douglasville.
“Just working as a community and giving back in a time when it’s very hard to make ends meet at times. We’re fortunate to have people that will reach out and give back to us,” Holly Springs Elementary Principal Minda Trexler said. “This is a way that they can get more of what they want on top of what they need.”
And most teachers agree that it’s hard to put a price tag on education.
“I mean, it’s probably saved me $200 to $300 and that’s not anything to laugh at especially in this day and age and this economy we’re experiencing with increased gas prices and grocery prices on the rise. It will definitely help us,” Boemer said.
In addition to the “clear the list” trend on Amazon, Governor Brian Kemp agreed to provide all teachers with $125 to be used this year for classroom expenses.
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