Back to School Support: How Educate Fairfax and the Community Stepped Up for Students
- alexis10428
- Aug 27
- 5 min read
Meeting the Needs of FCPS Students
This summer, Educate Fairfax, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit serving Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS), launched an ambitious campaign to raise funding to provide more than 35,000 students in 50 Title I schools with the supplies they need to start school prepared and confident.
That included 44 elementary schools, four middle schools, and two high schools.
“This idea came from knowing last year there were students in need that we really wanted to help, but we didn’t necessarily have all the funds to do so,” said Dr. Lynette Henry, Executive Director of Educate Fairfax.
FCPS is the ninth-largest school division in the country, comprising 199 schools and centers that serve 183,000 students, representing more than 200 languages.
More than 35% of FCPS students (more than 65,000 children) are economically disadvantaged and qualify for free or reduced-price meals. Among them, 35,000 students attend Title I schools, where the need is greatest.
This year, Title I schools are facing a $4.7 billion cut in federal funding, a devastating reduction for schools already stretched thin. In a county renowned for its resources and wealth, thousands of students continue to struggle with food insecurity and limited access to basic school supplies.
With reduced Title I funding, the need was even more urgent.
“This was going to be a challenge for them to be able to provide school supplies for many of their students,” Dr. Henry added.
Beyond Title I, there are also more than 800 FCPS students who qualify as homeless under the McKinney-Vento Act, meaning they live in temporary or inadequate housing such as shelters, motels, cars, or doubled up with relatives.
Educate Fairfax asked schools to share their needs and heard from both Title I and non-Title I schools.
“We ended up getting requests from other schools, which really showed us that, even though they weren’t a Title I school, they still had students experiencing hardships,” Dr. Henry explained.
Community Creativity: Swim-A-Thons and More
One of the most unique fundraising ideas came from FCPS alum and Educate Fairfax program specialist, Liz Brocato, who suggested collaborating with local swim teams to host swim-a-thons.
“A lot of these Northern Virginia Swimming League teams have teachers who serve as team reps or even coaches and a lot of the swimmers’ parents are teachers or staff members of FCPS, so they were happy and willing to help,” Liz said.
Three teams—the Ilda Clippers, Mansion House Piranhas, and Canterbury Woods C-Serpents—joined in, raising more than $6,500 to provide 440 school supply kits.
“I think many people don’t always see the disparities among students and schools,” Liz reflected after visiting one of the swim-a-thons with Dr. Henry and a school assistant principal.
“This experience helped shine a light on those differences,” she said.
Parents like Lauren Kinne, also an FCPS teacher and alumna, helped organize their teams’ efforts, adding raffles, music, and a big breakfast to motivate families.
“I tried to think of ways to make it easy on families but also create a special event,” she said. “The raffle really helped this to be successful, because the kids and families were more motivated, and it was zero net for us because families and local businesses donated it all.”
Her husband, Eric Kinne, Educate Fairfax’s manager of grants and program development, added: “Having somebody from the school come out and speak just made it real for the community. Families were there, community members who donated food, and those who provided prizes came to cheer swimmers on.
“It helped it become much bigger than just the kids in the pool—it gave everyone a deeper understanding of why this mattered.”
Rallying Support at Local Stores
In addition to swim-a-thons, Educate Fairfax partnered with local Walmart stores to collect donations.
“We enjoyed every bit of it!” Dr. Henry said. “We were at Walmart talking to people in the community, meeting people, then packing the supplies back at our office – and we had supplies everywhere. They were on the floor, on tables and chairs, in cupboards, in our offices, in the back of our cars – we partnered with school board members, and local businesses to make this successful. We couldn’t have done it without them or without the help of all our volunteers and summer interns.”
Office colleague, Dawn Clements, FCPS Ombuds walked into the office one day and looked at all the donations and said: “This is what generosity looks like.”
Volunteers played a big role, including Jessie Brocato, a 2022 Woodson High School graduate who helped pack 99 kits for schools.
“It makes me feel happy to do it, because I am following in my grandparents’ footsteps, helping people” Jessie said.
The Results: Thousands of Kits Delivered
Thanks to the generosity of donors, businesses, and community members, Educate Fairfax packed and distributed over 5,000 supply kits for students before the first day of school, supporting more than 60 FCPS schools, including the FCPS Student Welcome Center and one of the division’s homeless shelters.
School supply kits contained a backpack, pencils, crayons, colored pencils, markers, notebooks, folders, glue sticks, sharpeners, erasers, pencil pouches, scissors, and headphones.
Some of our amazing partners included:
Amazon
Capital One
Congregation Olam Tikvah
Goodwin House Bailey’s
Dogrul Associates
Virginia Railway Express
Mahan Hope Foundation
SEWA DC Chapter
NOVA Community Church
Campus Survival Kits
US Department of Transportation
Bruce Aft honoring the legacy of Sue Aft
Burke & Herbert Bank
School Board members Mateo Dunne and Ilryong Moon
and the many FCPS employees, many of whom donated by purchasing our "I ❤️ FCPS" t-shirts as part of our drive.
“To the countless individual donors and community members who gave their time, resources, and heart—we thank you. Together, you filled classrooms with generosity. Because of all of you, FCPS students are starting school equipped and confident,” Dr. Henry said.
Supplies will continue to be distributed throughout the year to schools that are in need. In alignment with FCPS’ Strategic Plan 2023-2030, Educate Fairfax is committed to providing every student with a strong start.
Looking Ahead
The 2025 drive highlighted the creativity and compassion of the community. Swim teams, local businesses, families, individuals and volunteers all came together to make sure students could begin the school year with confidence.
As Brocato reflected: “It was a super fun experience. I hope it inspires other pools and communities to support our Supplies for Success campaign. We want to do it again next year and hope you will join us!"
How You Can Help
You can still support FCPS students all year with school supplies:
$15 provides one student with a complete kit.
$25 provides a student with a backpack and supplies.
Donate today: Educate Fairfax School Supply Drive
Together, we can make sure every FCPS student starts the year equipped, confident, and ready to succeed.