Back to school time is not cheap
EUGENE, Ore. - A few Oregon schools are open this week for classes, with the big back-to-school push next week.
That means last minute shoppers are looking for last minute deals on school supplies.
"They're getting spirals. They're getting paper. They're getting pencils," says Bethel School District teacher Suzanne Robbins.
Teachers are also in the shopping mode, more than ever.
Looking at a stack of brand new spiral notebooks, Robbins did the calculating: "48 of them times 15 cents each and I got 3 boxes worth."
She teaches 6th grade at Bethel's Shasta Middle School, and it's time to get ready.
That means trips to the store to get those spiral notebooks and buying posters on-line.
These are all out-of-pocket costs for Robbins, about $150.
"That was a cost we didn't have to worry about because the district picked that up, but now with the district not getting as many funds, it has to come from somewhere," Robbins said.
Shasta parents have to pitch in. too. Robbins said that for the last 5 years, they've been asked to buy a ream of computer paper per child to offset printing costs.
"We look at that as a partnership; our parents and our teachers working together for the good of the kids," said Robbins.
