KEEPING STUDENTS SAFE AND ENGAGED DURING COVID-19


March 31, 2020

Dear Friend of SOWMA,

As part of our responsibility to reduce the spread of COVID-19, School on Wheels continues to adhere to strict safety measures to keep our students, volunteers and staff safe while ensuring students stay engaged and connected.

We are working with family shelter partners and state and local agencies to ensure our efforts to provide educational support and materials align with health and social distancing precautions. 

Below are program updates and ways you can help students continue to receive the guidance and tools they need throughout the coming weeks and months.  We will keep you informed as needs develop and events unfold.  In the interim, like all non-profit organizations, we are facing the need to maintain sustainability in order to continue serving our state's most vulnerable children and youth.  Any gift, no matter how small, will help immeasurably as we strive to meet emergency funding needed. 

Although our physical office is closed, we are working remotely and can be reached via the staff listing here.
Messages are also being retrieved at 508.587.9091. 

Thank you for your continued support during these difficult times.  We are grateful for those who have already pledged financial support for our ongoing efforts to provide academic, social and emotional support for students while keeping them safe and connected with learning. We invite you to continue to support our programs and will keep you apprised as our plans and activities unfold. 

With warm regards, 

Kathleen Graham
Executive Director 

MENTORING BRIDGE PROGRAM  
We have successfully transitioned 56 college students from campus life to a safe place to continue their studies. Most of these students are "unaccompanied minors," who do not have a permanent place of residence.  Mentors are communicating with students via email, FaceTime, Skype and Zoom. We are helping students with moving logistics and supplies such as bins and storage containers, and purchasing laptops and gift cards to alleviate financial burdens. If you would like to help by donating to our College Mentoring Relief Fund, please click here.
 
 
Currently our Tutoring Shelter Site Partners are assessing space accommodations and inventory needs. They report that children are engaged with SOWMA's lending library and current inventory of books, games and activities. Together we are in the process of developing, in conjunction with shelter management, an updated list of activity needs. We will keep you informed on these and other donations to help keep students engaged in the coming weeks. A special thank you to all of our volunteer tutors, like Dr. Heather Boxerman featured above, who gave students critical lessons on proper hygiene and hand-washing just prior to the outbreak of COVID-19. To help support our funding needs for upcoming workbooks and activity kits, click here.
 
We recently released a photo montage celebrating our 6,000th customized backpack delivered since the 2019/2020 school year began. You can see that here. We are deeply grateful for organizations such as Hope and Comfort, who have recently donated much-needed hygiene items to our backpacks as we develop delivery plans for the near future. We will be updating our AmazonSmile list within the coming days, and hope you will support our students while shopping online.
 
 
We are working with our partners and state and local officials to determine the fate of our annual Run, Walk or Wag, scheduled for May 2nd at Borderland State Park. We will keep you informed as decisions unfold. In the meantime, please give a salute to our sponsors, whose support makes this event, and our students' success, possible. Please see them here!



There are many ways to stay involved! CLICK HERE  

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United Way of Greater Plymouth County

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School on Wheels - MA
100 Laurel Street
Suite 121
East Bridgewater, Massachusetts 02333

508.587.9091

Federal Tax ID 20-1020880
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