Project Hope and Rock Hill Schools Education Foundation Back the Pack Program

PROJECT HOPE

Founded in 1975, they provide crisis assistance to those in need through food distribution and utility/prescription drug assistance. Though funds raised they will improve and expand their services to meet the needs of those in crisis. In 2018, the number of families needing assistance from Hope increased by 27%. They provide enough food for 3 meals a day for 7 days for every member of the household. If a family or individual is in a crisis Hope works to eliminate the fear of food insecurity by providing food until the crisis is over. This takes the burden of paying for food or paying for rent/utilities/prescription drugs off the family.

ROCK HILL SCHOOLS EDUCATION FOUNDATION BACK THE PACK PROGRAM

Established in 2008, Back the Pack is a program that discretely identifies undernourished students and provides them with food on weekends to alleviate symptoms of hunger when school meals are unavailable. It empowers students with the nutrition they need for academic success. Back the Pack operates out of the Logistics and Distribution classroom located at the Applied Technology Center (ATC). Students enrolled in the Logistics and Distribution class are learning the shipping and receiving trade; therefore packaging food for younger students aligns to their curriculum standards. To identify student participants we use teachers, guidance counselors, nurses, etc. vetted by District Family Outreach Coordinators to identify students in need of nutritional support. Participation is mainly determined by having conversations with the child about hunger, visits to school nurse, uncontrolled anger, incidents that involve stealing food, constant headaches, etc. (conversations and/or observations) and written approval of the parent for the child to participate. We expect to serve between 800-850 students (elementary, middle, and high school) for the 2019-2020 academic year.