NARRATOR: The following program is a production of Ozarks Public Television.

Thanks for joining us and welcome to Sense of Community.

I'm Michelle Skalicky.

When students' basic needs aren't met, learning can be impacted.

The National Center on Safe, Supportive Learning Environments says basic needs insecurity negatively impacts school attendance, social emotional well-being, health, and overall academic achievement.

As school starts back up, a nonprofit based in Springfield is preparing to meet students' needs so they can focus in the classroom.

Care to Learn works with school districts to provide students with emergent health, hunger, and hygiene resources.

My guest is Care to Learn president and CEO Krystal Simon.

Please stay tuned.

[theme music] NARRATOR: Welcome to Sense of Community.

Sense of Community is a public affairs presentation of Ozarks Public Television.

Well, thank you for joining me today to talk about Care to Learn.

Thank you so much for having me.

What does Care to Learn offer for Missouri elementary and secondary education students?

Absolutely.

So Care to Learn partners with school districts around the state of Missouri.

And we support educators in the areas of health, hunger, and hygiene so their students can succeed in school.

So any of those elements that might be a barrier to that child's attendance or maybe behavior in the classroom, we come alongside that school district and help support their students.

In the Springfield Public School District, over half of students are on free and reduced lunches, and of those, most are on free lunches.

So it seems like there is a big need for your services.

How exactly or how great is the need for what you do in the Springfield Public School District?

Yeah, it's pretty remarkable Springfield Public Schools was our first partner school district so we partner with 46 communities around the state.

But of course, Springfield is the largest, so we serve a lot of kids.

One of the biggest examples of the impact that we're able to make is with our hygiene and clothing closets that we have on site.

So there's 52 SPS buildings within the district, and we have 62 closets.

So there's a couple schools that actually the need is so great that they need multiple closets to serve those students.

And so we have brand new items, whether that's toothpaste, shampoo, conditioner, deodorant.

That school nurse can basically select what he or she wants for their building.

But that program alone, we had 12,000 student visits to that program, which is pretty remarkable when there's about a little over 25,000 students.

In addition to that, with SPS, we have a voucher program, and that's one of the biggest things that I get really excited about because it allows that child the choice to choose what he or she wants.

So a lot of times we think that a little girl that's in kindergarten wants pink or purple, but maybe her favorite color is blue, and she'd love to have a blue coat.

A lot of times the children that we serve, they don't have the opportunity to self-select.

They get a hand-me-down, or they get what's available to them.

And so through our voucher program, we were able to provide 3,000 vouchers for that child to go select items.

So that could be at Walmart.

A voucher could be at Shoe Carnival.

We also get voucher for haircuts.

So a lot of times that's a barrier.

Or even laundromats-- sometimes families-- a child might have clothes available, but mom or dad don't have a working washer and dryer so they don't have access to clean clothes.

So that's another remarkable program where we've been able to make a pretty significant impact this past year.

You've mentioned a few, but what are some of the most basic needs that a student has to have met in order to be successful in the classroom?

Yeah, I think it's anything that you and I would want to have that would allow us to feel welcome, included.

And so a lot of times those are things that you or I just take for granted because we have access to them.

Today you and I got to pick out what we were going to wear today, and that was available to us.

A lot of times the children that we serve, that might not be an option, or they might not know how to fix that situation.

Another opportunity for us to partner is with those hygiene items.

They usually are only a couple dollars, but a lot of times if that child doesn't have access to a comb, or toothpaste, or weather-appropriate clothing.

A lot of times when that weather shifts, that child might have grown over the summer, and then when they come back to school, the items that they had no longer fit.

And so really anything that could be a barrier to that child fitting in, that's where Care to Learn steps in.

As long as it's that health, hunger, hygiene component, and that's really important to us.

How is learning impacted when a child's basic needs aren't met before they go to school?

Yeah.

You know, I think we all know what it's like-- or for most of us, if I ask you, you know what it's like to feel hungry, right?

And a lot of times you're usually not happy.

You're not your best self if you're hungry.

And so I always try to restate that question back to the person.

Because I think we all kind of know what that's like.

When I'm hungry, I'm a little bit more irritable.

A lot of times you can't make the best decisions.

If you had something really sugary the day before and you still haven't eaten, a lot of times you're kind of not your best self.

And so I feel like that's what Care to Learn does is allows that child to be their best self and to feel included.

So that's-- hunger is one aspect of it.

But how you feel when you walk into a classroom, if you don't have the right clothing, or if you don't feel like you belong, a lot of times children will behave in ways that is really not typical of that child, but is really to circumstances outside of their control.

And that's really important to us is not only we're helping a child, but we're also giving a tool to that counselor, or that school bus driver, or the nurse to be able to serve that child as well.

So that's really important.

It helps the student, but it also helps that educator meet that need immediately.

Yeah, and that was a question I had.

So a student interacts with so many people on a given day.

Like you mentioned, bus drivers, teachers, custodians.

How does Care to Learn use those adults to identify the needs that students might have and then work to address those needs?

Yeah.

So I say all the time it's all about communication and sharing the mission.

And so internally we really try to work closely with SPS staff to make sure that they understand what Care to Learn does, and what our role is, and how they can utilize us.

So that first piece is really educating their staff on what Care to Learn can do.

And so that's really important.

With back to school, we've got new teachers coming to the building, or maybe new teachers to the district, or new bus drivers, or new counselors.

Care to Learn is really heavy-- heavily involved in all of that training in the front end to make sure that they know how to utilize us.

And then really it's just kind of following that process.

So we have processes in place in each building where they know in every Springfield Public Schools building, they know that their main point of contact is the school nurse.

And if the school nurse can't help them, then we have a standard referral that they can essentially submit that request.

So a perfect example is, if you and I both saw one child come to school today, and I'm the bus driver, and you're the nurse, and we notice this child is wearing the same outfit that she wore yesterday, we might be like, OK, there's probably something going on.

You and I could both submit a request, but we would see that in the system, and that child will be served once.

What's also great about partnering with Springfield Public Schools is I say all the time Care to Learn plays really well in the sandbox.

So it might be something out of the scope of what we do that maybe Care to Learn isn't the best partner, and they can utilize another partner that best meets that student's needs.

And at the end of the day, that's what we're here for.

We want to help kids succeed.

So you're going to do what you need to do to make sure their needs are met.

100%.

How important is it to not have any red tape in the way of getting the help that the kids need right away and to find that appropriate item or service that they need?

You know, it's huge.

I think I say all the time, you or I don't need another thing to do, right?

People are busy.

And it's no different for people working in education.

They're there because they feel called to educate or serve children.

And so if we create all of these barriers to where we make it difficult for them to meet that child's need, they're either not going to do it, or they're going to try to find a way to do it themselves.

And that means maybe it's after work and it eats into their family time.

And so what we try to do is to make sure that if a child has a need day of that we have created a system where we can meet that need day of.

Now there's some parameters.

There's usually a set time in each building where if we know about a need before or after a certain time, we will either meet that need that same school day or it's the following school day.

The only thing that gets a little tricky is if it's a medical need, a lot of times that takes a little bit-- those are a little bit more complex, and there's a few other factors at play there.

But at the end of the day, we want to make sure that if a child has a need, that we make it super easy for that educator to meet that student need day of.

How do you work to make sure that a child's dignity isn't impacted if someone sees a need?

And I mean, how do they approach the child in a way that doesn't make them feel different?

100%.

I think that we're so blessed that we have educators that are equipped and have been taught how to do that.

But we also come alongside and help and do that.

So meaning that those clothing closets are not going to be in the middle of a hallway where friends can see.

We're not going to call a student out and embarrass them.

It's a lot of pulling a child aside, having that conversation, understanding that we know what's happening.

But we're able to do that in a really unique way.

I will say people ask all the time, if we serve a building-- and I would use Pipkin as an example or Reed-- we serve a lot of children in those buildings.

But I couldn't tell you if I went in that building, I would have no idea who we had served or not served.

And so at the end of the day, it's never been about Care to Learn getting credit, or, hey, that came from Care to Learn.

That doesn't matter.

What matters is that child succeeding and keeping them in school.

To humanize the things you do, do you have any specific examples of some children whose needs were met, either in Springfield or another district?

Yeah.

So I always have a few of my favorite stories that I like to share, and one of which actually happened last school year.

And I get goosebumps just thinking about this story because I think it goes-- it's such a beautiful example of how Care to Learn should happen.

So it was now, I guess, be a year and a half ago in October.

So it was on one of those Missouri days where the weather turned almost immediately.

But we kind of knew.

Our forecasters had kind of been telling, hey, this cold front is coming in.

And so we had partnered with a local business, and they were providing, I think, 250 coats for when the weather turned.

So they were more winter weather coats.

And we had just gotten them in, and I'm not exaggerating.

A couple of days before they came into our office, and we were trying to coordinate with SPS as to where they were going to go, and who was going to get them.

And of course, the weather snap was happening sooner than we thought.

And in order for us to get volunteers, it just really didn't-- it wasn't going to happen.

And so we called upon our board to say, hey, you all know what the weather looks like this week.

We have these coats.

We now know where they're going.

We have 52 buildings.

Would you help our staff make sure that they get them in time to where if they know of a child, they can get them that day?

And sure enough, our board stepped up like they do, and all of those coats were distributed.

And then fast forward to that day, there was a bus driver, and he actually was the MVP for SPS last year.

His name is Rick.

He got an award last year at the SPS Back to School Rally that they do in August.

And Rick was on his route and doing like what he does, and he came upon a child with his-- this little girl was with her dad.

And this little girl was wrapped in a bath towel.

And the father kind of helped the little girl.

She was younger, younger elementary.

Helped the little girl get on the bus and then took the bath towel from her, and she went-- he went on his way.

Well, when he got to the school, he knew how to use Care to Learn.

He went to a school nurse, and we had coats available, and that little girl went home with a coat day of.

And I say all the time that there were so many beautiful moments that happened there, that made that story, in my opinion, it's exactly what Care to Learn's about.

It was a business partner that stepped up and donated a lot of coats-- and really nice coats that kids want to wear.

It was our board that stepped up and said, hey, we know that you don't have a big staff.

You've got 52 buildings.

We're going to get these coats delivered.

And then there was Rick, who was doing his job as a bus driver.

He safely got that child to school.

But it wasn't his job to get her a coat.

And so he stepped up in a really cool way, but he stepped up because he felt empowered and he knew what to do.

And so he was able to help.

And then how great is that for Rick, too?

Like, we all feel good about that.

And so to me, that is one of the best stories about Care to Learn because it really is a perfect example of how it should work.

No red tape, lots of people helping.

I always say, you know, lots of hands make light work.

And that's exactly what happened.

I love that story.

And I know you have others, many others, to tell, too.

You recently started the Secret Hero Project for teens.

Talk about that and how that works.

Oh my gosh, I love this project.

So we've always had a shop with a hero project for our elementary aged kiddos, but we did not have anything for our middle school and high school.

And I have a middle school son, and I'm going to tell you, like fashion and middle school is so hard, and everybody wants to fit in.

And so what we did is we launched a new program that allows teens to shop.

They get a gift card and they get to shop for items.

But what's super cool about that is educators nominate those students.

And the stories that you hear about why these students are deserving, it has nothing to do with what they look like, their behavior.

It's people that see them for who they are and want to help in a big way.

You know, I think we gave them $150 gift card to go get new clothing items.

And the response from those kids, you would have thought that these kids-- I'm going to cry.

You would have thought that they would have won the lottery.

It was such-- and I'm reminded, I say all the time at Care to Learn when you don't have your basic needs met, the simple things are the big things.

And so if we can step up and provide that, and allow that child to feel included, and wanted, and loved, and cared for, and give back to add a little bit of dignity, it's worth more than $150 gift card.

You know, I think about back when my kids were in school and how exciting it was for us to go pick out new school supplies and new clothes.

But there are a lot of kids that don't get that.

So I can imagine in that instance that just means the world to a child.

Well, and even SPS has done a great job the last three years.

They've done a Back to School Bash where it's a community-based event.

So they have one community-based event, and then they have little events within a building.

And we just finished that event, and it was so fun.

It was not hey, you're going to come in and you're getting a bag of clothes, or a bag of groceries, or a backpack.

It was such as-- it's exactly what you would want in a community event.

It's people together.

They're super excited.

People are in a great mood.

There were thousands of people there.

They had been waiting in line for a bag of hygiene items, a bag of household cleaning products, a bag of groceries, a backpack with a few school supplies in it.

But everybody was in such a great mood.

And it just goes to show you how grateful people are.

But then, at the same time, how great the need is.

I know it's got to make you guys feel good to do what you do.

What is it like to be part of that?

You know, I feel like sometimes I feel like we're not doing enough.

So I think that when you have an event like that, I say all the time, I'm a lot-- I'm pretty removed from it.

I don't know who we serve.

I just know that we're doing great work.

I get to hear the stories.

But going to an event like that, you can't not see the need.

And when you have thousands of people coming in, Morey Mechlin, who was a previous director at Care to Learn, always said that we hide poverty well in Springfield.

And she is so true.

Because the thousands of people that I saw, they're not people that are holding up a sign on a street corner.

These are men and women just like you and I that are working to provide for our families, that love our children, that are working jobs, and are wanting our kids to succeed.

They just need a little help.

And so for me, I always ask, what does that look like and how can I help.

Let's go back to the beginning.

We've got a few more minutes.

Talk about how Care to Learn got started and when-- how long have you been around.

Yeah.

So I love the Care to Learn story.

It's one of those things where I say all the time that our founder did not need another thing to do or was not setting out to start a nonprofit.

So at the time, our founder, Doug Pitt, was serving on the Springfield Chamber of Commerce Board, and he was hearing statistics.

And there are two stories that resonated with him that were told that day.

And they are still the stories that we hold onto 16 years later.

So it was three siblings that were sharing a single toothbrush.

I mean, today, even a toothbrush doesn't cost more than a-- less than $1, $1 and a half.

And then there was a young man that had no warm pants to wear, so he ended up having to wear his mom's jeans.

And Doug thought, like, I would be horrified if I had to do that.

And so he says all the time that Care to Learn chose him because he left that meeting and he couldn't stop thinking about those kids.

And so Doug does what Doug does best is he picked up the phone, and he was like, hey, we've got to do something.

And he started calling business leaders in our community to say, hey, let's start a fund.

Let's help kids right here in our community.

That was really the heart behind Care to Learn.

That wasn't like, hey, we're going to serve students all across Missouri.

It was we have kids right here in our backyard.

Let's do something.

Well, Springfield became very successful, and other school districts started taking notice of what they were doing and said, hey, we'd love to have a Care to Learn chapter, too.

How can we get involved?

And that was this beautiful, organic snowball of how Care to Learn began.

So now we partner with 46 school districts around the state.

So we have Cape Girardeau, Jefferson City, Kansas City, Saint Louis, and then we have a pretty significant rural footprint.

But the idea behind it is if you have a school district or a community that has gaps and you want to partner, we want to help serve those students.

And so we've had great success.

We just surpassed around 3 million needs met, which is how we track how we make impact.

And I think that I say all the time, I think we're just getting started.

How does a chapter work?

So if somebody wants to start a chapter, what do they need to do?

And how do those chapters operate?

Yeah, absolutely.

So the agreement or how we operate is directly with the school district.

So a lot of times a community leader would watch this and be like, I don't have-- I live in Marshfield, and I would love to have a chapter in Marshfield.

The first step would be to get leadership buy-in at that school district level because we partner directly with the school district.

And the reason for that is we feel like that is a trusted adult that sees that kids day in and day out, and they can see what does those children need.

They also understand what else, what other resources are in the community.

So I say all the time, when we partner with a school district, you don't have to have exclusivity just to work with Care to Learn.

A lot of times, there's multiple partners in multiple ways.

So I would use Ozarks Food Harvest as a perfect example.

In Springfield, we don't do the weekend backpacks, feeding backpacks.

Ozarks Food Harvest does.

Now we might have on-site food pantries in certain buildings, but we play well with Ozarks Food Harvest.

The same would be true if we were to partner with a new school district or a new community.

So that relationship is directly with Care to Learn.

Our central office, which is where our staff is, is in Springfield.

So we have the Springfield chapter and then we have our central office, both located in Springfield.

But that team at the central office, we exist to serve those school districts.

So we have a team that really supports and makes their job easier on how to implement and to run a program like Care to Learn.

If somebody is interested in starting a chapter, where do they begin?

I would love to talk to them.

No, we have a chapter services team.

I would encourage them to call our office or to visit our website, caretolearn.org, and to check us out.

There's ways to connect there.

And we'd love just to start having that conversation and see if that might be a fit for their community.

Where do you get the money to serve all these kids?

And how can the public get involved?

Absolutely.

So we have been so blessed.

It takes a lot of hands to make Care to Learn happen.

So primarily, up until the last 15 years, primarily support has come from individual donors and foundations.

We are super blessed because the need has increased, and we've had partners that have come alongside and they've donated product, or they've volunteered for us, or they've given a cash donation.

And so that's really been key for us.

And that's really how we've been able to meet the needs of the three million so far.

How can the public donate money to go toward the needs that you're trying to meet?

Absolutely.

So they can visit our website and make a donation online at caretolearn.org.

Or they're welcome to call and we can talk about the ways that they could support.

So if they'd like to support a specific community, those funds can be designated.

Or if they'd like to designate for a particular program.

So I'm really passionate about hygiene, or health, or feeding, you can designate those funds as well.

And we're willing to talk through what the goals is of the donor, as well as what the needs are of Care to Learn.

So always a gift is wonderful.

We're able to buy-- it depends on the item, but for the most part, three items to one of what you would buy at like a Walmart.

So if you go and buy toothpaste, on average, I can buy three of those, which is why we always say that cash or that donation is really key.

But we do have some donors that they love to get coupons, or shop deals, and we love that.

And so you can always drop in in-kind donations and we can give you a receipt for that.

Or if you're like, I'm not in a season of my life where I can give in that way, but I'd love to give of my time.

We need people that want to do that as well.

And so there's ways that you can volunteer in our office, whether that's restocking, hygiene items, or clothing items, or putting snack kits together.

We always need volunteers as well.

So it sounds like, if the public really wants to help meet kids' needs in their community, there's plenty of ways to do it.

100%.

100%.

Thanks for joining us today.

I appreciate it.

Thank you so much for having me.

We want to leave you with where you can find out more.

I'm Michelle Skalicky.

Thanks for watching the program.

And until next time, goodbye.

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