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Date: 8/16/2023
SPRINGFIELD — Beach bags will soon be traded for backpacks as the start of the school year looms.
To reconnect students and staff, as well as establish new connections, the Springfield Public Schools will host a back-to-school celebration on Saturday, Aug., 26 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Blunt Park, 1780 Roosevelt Ave.
The free event is open to all Springfield students and families. Registration is not required.
“It’s a chance for parents and students to connect with their child’s school,” said Springfield Public Schools Family and Community Engagement Chief Jose Escribano.
Each school will have its own table along with staff to interact with. Free backpacks — provided by Cradles to Crayons, a nonprofit organization that provides school supplies to homeless and low-income children — will be handed out.
Springfield Public Schools partners with their food provider, Sodexo, for a free barbecue lunch that everyone can enjoy. There will also be a DJ providing live entertainment.
The back-to-school celebration has been going on for more than 20 years, Escribano said. Typically, over 1,500 backpacks are distributed which attests to the turnout.
Escribano shared that the schools host a variety of community engagement events, including a parent education expo. At the end of the 2022-2023 school year, the inaugural expo took place and served as a free workshop with over 700 families and more than 200 community organizations that participated.
“[The] back-to-school celebration is a little different, but it gives a chance to reconnect or if you’re new, [you] can talk and meet people and get more information,” said Escribano.
For those unable to attend the event, Escribano encouraged people to be on the lookout for back-to-school celebrations within their neighborhoods.