Courtesy of Housing Authority of New Haven
This article was submitted by Jasmin Franjul of the Housing Authority of New Haven.
Hundreds lined up at Clinton Avenue School to get a little help starting off the upcoming school year right.
Elm City Communities/Housing Authority of New Haven gave away more than 600 backpacks and school supplies at its 2nd Annual Back to School Fair to help prepare families for the 2015 – 2016 school year last Tuesday.
Students and their families arrived by the dozens to not only get school supplies but to enjoy an afternoon of entertainment along with carnival themed food and fun activities including face painting, arts and crafts and a 40 foot long inflatable obstacle course.
Two of the housing authority’s “Elm City Believes” programs — the Summer Reading Challenge and the Report Card Challenge — were highlighted as a part of the fair. More than 100 students who had “perfect attendance” during the last school year, and aimed high in the classroom were recognized with certificates and prizes for their hard work and participation in the program.
Mayor Toni Harp and New Haven Public Schools CFO Victor De La Paz were both on hand at the event to give special remarks and a hardy congratulations to Summer Reading Challenge winners like T.J. (pictured above), a third-grader from Katherine Brennan School.
“Students equipped with basic necessities at the start of school tend to respond better and learn more when classes resume,” Harp said. “I encourage parents to follow their children’s progress throughout the year by reviewing report cards and attending parent/teacher conferences.”
During the fair, HANH, in partnership with the United Way of Greater New Haven, awarded one special winner of the Summer Reading Challenge a Kindle tablet. Six student winners of the housing authority’s Report Card Challenge received recognition certificates for their achievement in categories such as attendance, honors and most improved grades.
The Back to School Fair was sponsored by Halloran & Sage, Connecticut Waste Processing, LLC, Community Health Network of CT Foundation, Berchem, Moses & Devlin, Resource Services, LLC., Centi Landscaping, Banton Construction, Paul Bailey Architects, ICON, Haynes Construction, Joseph Merritt, DocuPrint Now, Environmed Services, G.L. Capasso, Cohen’s Key Shop, Abate Restaurant, Clifford Beers Clinic, Start Bank, Gerald Harmon Law Offices, Malangone Plumbing, LLC, Crumbie Law Group, Ruby Barnwell Fund, Lynch, Traub, Keefe & Errante, P.C., Zared Enterprises, New Haven Branch of NAACP and Reitman’s & Associates.
This year’s carnival topped last year’s attendance of more than 500 families, and HANH Executive Director Karen DuBois-Walton said the event is one with which she looks forward because provides “student residents and their families the tools and resources needed to get a jumpstart” on the new school year.
“At the core of our ‘Elm City Believes’ youth education initiative, which has been highlighted as a national model, is partnership and collaboration — today’s event shows what can happen when Education and Housing work together in support of our youth,” DuBois-Walton said. “These types of partnerships support the notion that we can stop the cycles of poverty. Our goal at Elm City Communities is to be a platform and a portal of educational opportunities and supportive programs for our students and their families that will help to narrow the opportunity and achievement gaps.”
