The Response of Education Nonprofits to New Covid-19 Challenges
1. Free and Reduced Lunches
Many education nonprofits have begun to provide low-income students and families with meals. An example is NEST Community Learning Center: an education nonprofit located in Loveland, Ohio. This organization has opened six local sites around their district where students and their families can receive free meals and snacks from 12:30-1:30pm during the week. The sites are strategically located in areas with the most need. For instance, some sites are found in the parking lots of apartment complexes, allowing students who lack transportation to conveniently walk outside and grab a meal. The organization also provides home delivery services for families who cannot make it to one of the sites during the designated time. On Thursdays, the nonprofit begins to distribute "weekend bags," which contain soup cans, bread, granola bars, chips, peanut butter, jelly, instant mac and cheese, bagels, and more.2. Internet Access
Education nonprofits have made it a priority to ensure that all students have internet access during this time of remote learning.3. Academic Support
In addition to now having to accommodate students nutritional needs, education nonprofits have had to find creative ways to offer academic resources to low-income students while following social distancing regulations. Instead of working closely with individuals or small groups of students with community shared resources, education nonprofits have had to move their support online or offer academic materials for students to take home for independent use. NEST Community Learning Center has begun distributing books to homes and handing out academic packets to students who pick up free meals at one of their sites.4. Funding
How has funding been affected? How have they changed fundraising events or gotten donations?"We took advantage of some of the Covid-19 relief funds that were released in March and April. . . and also an individual appeal that we made to individual donors to get donated over 100 Chromebooks and iPads that we got out to the students so they could connect."
-Breakthrough's Executive Director
