By Andy Furman
NKyTribune reporter
At Caywood Elementary this afternoon, Amazon presented Kenton County School District with a special gift — $50,000 worth of backpacks and school supplies that Amazon donated to the district on the first week of school in hopes of alleviating the financial burden for teachers and to set up students for a successful year of learning.
Amazon Air Hub Assistant General Manager Liz Hamedi announced the donation to Kenton County School District educators, Principal Kim Mott, and Superintendent Dr. Webb after coordinating a surprise school assembly at Caywood Elementary.
During the gathering, Amazon revealed the delivery of classroom supplies for teachers to ensure students can engage in creative projects, kinesthetic activities, and real-world experiences.
“As millions of kids head back to school this month, it’s important to give educators and students the changes to improve learning opportunities – and that starts with making sure they don’t have to worry about school supplies,” said Liz Hamedi, Amazon assistant general manager. “We’re proud to partner with Kenton County School District to help inspire teachers and students not just on the first day of school, but all the way through the new school year.”
Kenton Supt. Henry Webb
On average, an educator spends $500 a year out of their own pocket on needed school supplies for their students. Last year, as part of Amazon’s month-long volunteering campaign, more than 50,000 Amazonians from over 50 countries came together to participate in and lead around 1,800 community events where employees offered to positively impact their local communities.
Superintendent Webb says with Amazon’s contribution, students and educators will have access to the right kind of resources to improve learning opportunities, focus on their studies and have a positive impact in the classroom, as the school district welcomes roughly 14,000 scholars back for the first week of school.
Amazon selected Kenton County School District because of its commitment to invest in the communities where its employees live and work. To celebrate, associates and leaders from Amazon’s Air Hub delivered school supplies and engaged teachers to emphasize the importance of equitable access to education and the materials needed to participate fully in the classroom.
The event is part of 100+ planned events around the country to surprise students and educators and support the school district’s effort to increase access to the tools for children in underserved communities.
Through this effort, Amazon supported thousands of school districts to ensure educators and students in underserved neighborhoods had the most desired needs met as they headed back to school. From filing thousands of backpacks with needed school supplies to hosting virtual reading sessions and book fairs at local schools, Amazon partnered in various ways with local nonprofit organizations across North America to donate over $1,000,000 and deliver 75,000 books to benefit nearly 30,000 youth. This year, Amazon is expecting to use its scale for good and help build strong communities now and for generations where they have a physical presence by engaging more than 70,000 unique volunteers during their global month of volunteering.
Mott, principal at Caywood Elementary School, didn’t take seriously the email she got from Amazon — at first.
“When I got my first e-mail,” she told the Northern Kentucky Tribune, “yes, I thought was being scammed. I didn’t even respond.”
Lucky for her – and the staff and teachers at Caywood – she got a second one – and this time her response paid off.
The Amazon e-mail was real – very real.
Kim Mott
“It’s such a great way to alleviate the financial burden on our teachers,” said the surprised Mott, who helped organized the surprise announcement event.
The supplies include, pencils, pens, crayons, notebooks, scissors, glue sticks and anything else a youngster from kindergarten to fifth grade may need to survive elementary school.
James A. Caywood Elementary School has 530 students from kindergarten to fifth grade.
Boxes of school supplies from Amazon for the Kenton County School District (Photo by Wendy Furman/NKyTribune)
