United Way NCA Launches Back-to-School Collection Drive

From the United Way of the National Capital Area:

On Thursday, September 1st, United Way of the National Capital Area (United Way NCA), the region’s preeminent convener, collaborator and catalyst for social change throughout the National Capital community, will bring together area residents to help assemble backpacks full of school supplies, non-perishable food products and personal care items for area students. This is the official kick-off of collection drives around the region.

United Way NCA staff and volunteers will be on hand for the collection drive from 2:00 – 4:00 pm (ET) outside of the entrance to the Lord & Taylor store located in Tysons Corner. During the collection drive, volunteers will be assembling “Stuff the Bus” backpacks and will also be accepting donations from area residents.

Each of the “Stuff the Bus” backpacks contain school supplies such as gift cards to Targets, Wegmans and Walmart, as well pens, pencils, scissors, erasers and other needed supplies to help middle school students succeed. The backpacks will also contain personal care items such as toothpaste, toothbrushes and food.

WHAT: United Way NCA’s Back-to-School “Stuff the Bus” Campaign Collection Drive Kick-Off to Support Area Students
WHERE: Lord &Taylor (directly outside the store entrance), Tysons Corner Center
7950 Tysons Corner Center, McLean, VA 22102
WHEN: Thursday, September 1st, 2016 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm
WHO: United Way of the National Capital Area Staff and VolunteersTimothy Johnson, Vice President, Community Impact, United Way NCA

As students throughout the Greater Washington-area head back to school, United Way NCA has launched the Stuff the Bus campaign which to date, has brought together more than 180 volunteers to assemble more than 1,600 backpacks which have been distributed to 9 schools and/or United Way NCA member nonprofits in Washington, D.C., Northern Virginia, and Maryland. For example, 100 backpacks have already been delivered to Langston Hughes Middle School in Reston, Virginia.

The collection drive will continue from September 1st through September 17th. The public can visit Lord & Taylor in Tyson’s Corner, who is hosting the collection drive, anytime September 1st through September 17th to drop-off supplies. You can find additional locations for the collection drives for Stuff the Bus year-round by visiting United Way NCA.

As part of United Way NCA’s five-year, $12.3 million Community Commitment, the nonprofit will be targeting 12,000 at-risk middle school students in the National Capital Area to help them perform at grade level and on track to succeed. Every year, 160,000 young people in Washington, D.C., Northern Virginia, and Maryland, are dropping out of high school and research shows that those students most at risk of dropping out were also struggling in middle school.

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