Clothes Make the Student
It’s the ages-old teen lament: “I don’t have anything to wear!” But for some kids, it’s more than a fashion statement.
Poor kids – most often minorities, according to research – often skip school because they’re embarrassed to be seen in the same outfit day after day. Hispanic marketing shop Luna Bacardi wants to change that.
The Santa Monica, CA, agency will distribute clothes and school supplies to 10,000 Los Angeles-area students this fall. Its nonprofit Luna Bacardi Foundation hosts fundraisers and solicits donations from clients, then shops for deals on clothes and school gear. The agency works with the Los Angeles unified school system to pinpoint kids with high absenteeism, then approaches them at home.
“The state loses $48 a day for every kid who’s absent,” says Luna Bacardi president Gregorio Bennett. “That really adds up.”
The agency may expand to other cities next year if the program goes well in L.A.
