'You want to make it a home', teachers spend out of pocket for classroom supplies
EL PASO, Texas (KFOX14) — Teachers in El Paso said they are spending hundreds of dollars to make sure their classrooms are ready for their students.
By the end of the school year they will have spent over a thousand dollars.
Kara Englisbee and Alexandria Piña are first year teachers with the El Paso Independent School District.
"I always had a passion for kids and helping them learn, so I always knew teaching was something I wanted to do even when I was little," Englisbee said.
"I always wanted to make a difference in learning and I also wanted to change the ways of education and I always been passionate about teaching younger kids," Piña said.
Englisbee and Piña said they will have the passion to teach this year, but didn't expect their pocket books to be impacted by the cost of school supplies.
Inflation like many things is driving up the price to buy all the things they need.
"I had nothing, I had classroom resources, but not a lot and so I spent, honestly on my first paycheck I spent about 400 to 500 dollars," Piña said.
Teachers say no matter the cost, they want their students to have a good year.
"You want them to feel welcomed and accepted and feel good in their own classroom because they're in there just as much as you [teachers] are," Englisbee said.
"Us teachers we're teaching the future of the world and in order for our classroom to be successful we need all that school supplies and we need everything from out of pocket," Piña said.
Elizabeth Enriquez Payan has been teaching for almost a decade and said purchasing items for classrooms is the behind the scenes work that many people don't see.
"We go in on non-duty days to set up our classroom so it looks fun and presentable and it's an environment that they want to go to," Enriquez Payan said.
Teachers say they're spending a lot on their classrooms and often have to choose between school supplies or personal bills.
"You want to get all the materials you need for your students to be successful and now you have to stop and think: can I afford this? Will I be able to afford this?," Enriquez Payan said.
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