Minnesota’s 500+ Migrant Families Benefit Through the Collaborative Efforts of Three Local Non-profits
Roseville – On Sunday, June 5, Minnesota’s migrant students and families will receive a welcome delivery of school supplies and shelf-stable food, courtesy of a collaboration between the Minnesota Department of Education, The Sheridan Story and The Kids in Need Foundation. Each year, thousands of families migrate across states for agricultural purposes. As a result, the children of these families face regular interruptions to their education. Several communities across the state, ranging from Breckenridge to Rochester and others in between, open their schools during the summer months to provide the academic instruction and enrichment opportunities these students need in order to maintain their progress toward high school graduation, further learning and productive employment.
Assisting the volunteer effort, Minnesota Education Assistant Commissioner Hue Nguyen will be joined by Rob Williams, Executive Director of The Sheridan Story, members of Beth Jacob Congregation, and Executive Director Dave Smith and Director of National Accounts Jeanne Mock of the Kids in Need Foundation The goal of the collaboration is to provide support and build awareness of the migrant families who provide a vital work force and economic resource to local employers and our state each year.
What: Volunteers packing school supplies and food for delivery to migrant children and families working in Minnesota for the summer.
Who: The Minnesota Department of Education, the Sheridan Story and the Kids in Need Foundation
When: Sunday, June 5 at 2 p.m.
Where: The Sheridan Story Warehouse, 740 Harding St NE Suite B, Minneapolis, MN 55413, 612-568-4003
More About the Migrant Education Program
Children of migrant farm workers face regular interruptions to their education as they move with their families between states for agricultural work. The Migrant Education Program (MEP) is a national program that provides educational and support services to eligible migrant children between the ages of 3-21. The goal of the Migrant Education Program is to ensure that all migrant students reach challenging academic standards and graduate with a high school diploma that prepares them for responsible citizenship, further learning, and productive employment. Minnesota provides academic instruction during the summer and other support service to approximately 500- 700 children and families each year. Visit the MEP webpage.
The Sheridan Story
Over 200,000 children in the state of Minnesota live in food insecurity and do not always know if they will receive their next meal. The Sheridan Story’s purpose is to respond to this need by closing the weekend food gap between Friday and Monday, when children are not able to participate in the free or reduced meal programs at school.
The Sheridan Story is an ever-growing network of weekend food programs, commonly called backpack programs, operating in 96 schools serving nearly 4,000 kids weekly. They implement a unique organizational model that provides logistical expertise and project execution while leveraging community partnerships for funding and volunteers. For more information visit www.fightchildhungermn.com or join us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
The Kids In Need Foundation:
The Kids In Need Foundation’s mission is to ensure that every child is prepared to learn and succeed by providing free school supplies nationally to students most in need. The Kids In Need Foundation, a national 501(c)(3) charitable organization founded in 1995, has distributed nearly $800 million in school supplies, directly benefiting 4.8 million students and more than 150,000 teachers annually. For more information, visit www.KINF.org and join us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram: @KidsInNeed