As students and teachers prepare for a new school year, United Way of Metropolitan Dallas, volunteers and community partners came together to make sure two Dallas ISD campuses are ready to welcome them with confidence, support and opportunity. 

On August 7, more than 130 volunteers gathered at Eladio L. Martinez Learning Center and Clara Oliver Elementary School for our annual Stock the School initiative, part of the Aspire United Volunteer Series presented by Texas Instruments and supported by Vistra, DN Tanks and Rocket Mortgage. Together, they spent the morning transforming learning spaces, assembling resources and providing essential supplies that will ensure students and educators start the year strong. 

At United Way of Metropolitan Dallas, we believe every child deserves the opportunity to thrive, and it all starts in the classroom. For 100 years, we’ve worked to support local students, because educational success creates a lifelong foundation for opportunity. Stock the School is one way we bring that commitment to life by ensuring schools have the resources they need to help every learner succeed. 

Volunteers Create a Lasting Impact 

Throughout the day, volunteers rolled up their sleeves to tackle projects designed to improve both student learning environments and teacher support spaces. 

Across both campuses, teams organized and cleaned shared spaces, refreshed teacher lounges and workspaces, assembled and installed updated décor, and stocked shelves with essential learning supplies and materials. These improvements help create welcoming, functional environments where students can focus on learning and teachers can do their best work. 

At Clara Oliver Elementary School, volunteers completed five major projects, including assembling kits, organizing and cleaning a storage closet, refreshing the teacher lounge and conference room, and revitalizing a teacher workroom. Thanks to generous volunteer donations, the campus also received: 

• 300 new student uniforms 

• 200 student snacks 

• 200 literacy kits 

• More than 100 books 

• 100 pairs of headphones 

• 50 teacher kits assembled by volunteers 

• Hygiene kits for students 

One teacher who got a sneak peek at the new spaces said, “This is what you call a teachers’ lounge! Fixing up these spaces was long overdue, and we’re so happy to have the help.” 

Meanwhile, volunteers at Eladio L. Martinez Learning Center worked alongside school staff to enhance learning spaces and refresh the laundry room and an adult restroom. They also set up new spaces that will support learning, including a calm down corner, a sensory space and multiple storage options in the counselor’s office, two teacher workspaces and a teacher’s lounge—complete with new furniture, snacks, drinks, and coffee and tea stations.  

The school also received: 

• 450 uniforms 

• 100 teacher kits 

• 100 phonics books  

• 5 boxes of assorted school supplies for students 

• A brand-new washer and dryer 

Together, these projects saved both schools more than $50,000 in supplies, materials and labor. These resources will ensure that students arrive ready to learn while giving educators access to tools that support classroom success from day one. 

Supporting Students and Teachers 

Stock the School is about more than school supplies. It’s about investing in the people and places that make learning possible. 

Teachers across the country often spend hundreds of dollars of their own money on classroom necessities each year. Meanwhile, as the cost of food and other necessities rise, many families in our community struggle to afford basic school supplies, uniforms and snacks for the school day. By equipping classrooms, organizing workspaces and providing educational materials, our volunteers help ease some of the burden on teachers and students alike, so the focus can remain on learning. 

As Chara Pace, principal at Clinton P. Russell Elementary, said during last year’s event: “This means that the community cares about our teachers, our students and our campus as a whole. If we pour into the teachers, they’ll be able to pour into the students. They’re in a space mentally where they can give back. If we’re able to connect with them and get them the things they need to feel comfortable, then they’ll in turn be able to support our students and prepare them for success.”  

Community Partnerships Power Progress 

The success of Stock the School would not be possible without the dedication of our volunteers and corporate partners. 

We are deeply grateful to Texas Instruments, Vistra, DN Tanks and Rocket Mortgage for their partnership and commitment to advancing educational opportunity in North Texas. Their support demonstrates what’s possible when businesses, nonprofits and community members come together around a shared goal. 

Building Opportunity, Together 

Stock the School directly supports our mission to improve access to education, income and health, the building blocks of opportunity for all North Texans. 

Every organized classroom, stocked shelf, literacy kit and school uniform represents more than a donation. It represents a community showing students that they are seen, valued and supported. When students walk into a welcoming classroom with the resources they need and the encouragement of an entire community behind them, they’re better positioned to succeed, not just this school year, but for years to come. 

To every volunteer, partner, educator and supporter who made this year’s Stock the School initiative possible: Thank you for helping create brighter futures, one school at a time. 

Join Us in Supporting Education in North Texas 

Stock the School may be a wrap, but you can still help equip students and teachers for success as they kick off the new school year. Make a donation to United Way of Metropolitan Dallas, and your dollars can fund programs that give students a head start, such as: 

• Once Upon a Month, which delivers free age-appropriate children’s books to nearly 12,000 young readers across North Texas each year 

• Dollars for College, which has kickstarted college savings accounts for more than 1,100 low-income families 

• kids teaching kids, which introduced more than 12,000 local students to healthier eating habits last year 

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