It’s July and it is hot outside. Yes, it happens every year. And every year about this time everything starts ramping up for back to school time – it’s everywhere. For many families it is a very exciting time as shopping commences for new school clothes and the coveted new school supplies. But, every year at about this time the staff at the OKCPS Foundation starts working the plan for winter coats for our kids. The Coat-A-Kid program, run jointly with Oklahoma City Public Schools, raises funds to provide a new, warm winter coat for our students in need. While it’s miserable to even think about putting on a coat with the heat we’re experiencing, now is the critical time to raise money in order to get the coats ordered and delivered ahead of the cold weather that is coming in just a few months.

We may not like this statistic, but we need to acknowledge and own it: In Oklahoma, 15.7 percent of our population lives in poverty, which ranks us as the state with the 8^th highest poverty rate in the country. In Oklahoma City Public Schools, a staggering ninety -two percent of our 33,000 students/families live at or below the poverty line. What this means in terms of what our kids need is multi-faceted, and certainly reaches well beyond coats. Poverty isn’t just about a family living without financial means. There are a multitude of adverse social-emotional stresses that may be going along with it, including food insecurity, job losses, bankruptcy, mental health issues, substance abuse, divorce, having a family member incarcerated, lack of transportation, eviction/homelessness, etc. Living with just one of these situations would be difficult to handle, but some families experience many at one time, and all of these adverse experiences affect our kids.

Our OKCPS educators are trained and skilled in developing supportive relationships with our students, which is known to provide healing to chronic stress.  While the journey is ongoing, data supports very positive outcomes for students who are provided equitable opportunities and the ability to learn in a school culture that helps students succeed by developing a growth mindset with relationships, achievement, rich classroom culture and engagement. But, our schools can’t do it alone.

Talking about coats in the heat of summer may seem illogical, but it’s truly the perfect time logistically. Talking about coats when the needs are so great may seem like a band aid to the much larger problem of poverty in our community – and it is. We have much to do as a state, as a community and as citizens to turn the tide on generational poverty. Thousands of our students will not have a winter coat without the help of our community each year and that is just not acceptable. There are many ways to help, but the Coat-A-Kid program is a simple, tangible way to support students. To provide support, please go to www.okckids.com/coat-a-kid.