Baltimore's Back to School Kickoff gets students set for new year
BALTIMORE -- Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott is helping children get excited and ready for the new school year by hosting his annual Back-to-School Kickoff event on Saturday at War Memorial Plaza.
Nearly 2,000 students received a free backpack fully stocked with supplies, including binders, notebooks and pencils.
Miyah Robertson says she is getting ready to start her senior year of high school but trying to get all of her school supplies together felt daunting. Most Maryland students, including those in Baltimore, return to school on Monday.
"I start Monday and I don't have anything," Robertson said.
At Mayor Scott's Back-to-School event, Scott and volunteers made sure students are heading to the first day of school on the right foot.
Saturday's event included music, dancing, face painting and activities to get students and their families excited about going back to school.
"There are a lot of kids who grew up here that don't really have much," said Marland Harris, a volunteer who plays basketball at Morgan State. "So for them to be able to come here, and us to be able to help them and give them backpacks and notebooks and things like that, it just makes me feel good and it makes us feel good as an organization."
Scott said it's important for the entire family to be involved in setting up their student for success.
"This year we're focusing big on attendance and reading and math," Scott said. "We're asking every single parent, every single guardian, to know where their children are."
The back-to-school event was also about making sure students and families have the support they need for a smooth start to the school year.
"We have to make sure that our young people have the nutrition they need, they're getting the sleep that they need, but today is about making sure they have the physical materials that they need," Scott said.
"(We have) resources that they may need for their family at home, within their community, as well as city school resources, to make sure everybody is enrolled, they've done annual student verification," added Tenne Thrower, community engagement administrator with the Baltimore City Schools.
