Back to School rally in New Haven

NEW HAVEN, Conn. (WTNH) -- The New Haven Board of Education, and WYBC radio, hosted a big Back to School Rally on Friday.

"How excited are you about going back to school," News 8's Jeff Valin asked sixth grader Anasia Lujan.
 
"Not really, it's boring," she said.

New Haven, with help from WYBC, threw the city's annual back-to-school campaign event Friday, making all kinds of assistance a one-stop shop at Hillhouse High School.

"You can see, we have a lot of community tables, and so it connects families to community resources, which helps the families whether it's signing up for health insurance or learning about the Promise program," said Susan Weisselberg, from New Haven Public Schools.

One big draw was free books and school items.

"In these economic times, people need book bags and school supplies," said Samuel Tilery from WYBC, "and that's basically what we provide."

"We had some sponsors donate money, we bought 1,300 backpacks and some school supplies," Weisselberg said. "People donated school supplies, we put them in, and we'll hand them out until supplies run out."

The school system gave away those free backpacks, but folks had to have a child that's in the school system, and they couldn't just walk in and run right out with the prize.

"People have to visit five of the community tables, they get stamped, then they go get a backpack," Weisselberg explained. "'Read to Grow' donated some books, so they can also select a book that they're interested in reading, at the same time."

One Hillhouse student also got a scholarship from Gateway Community College.

"A thousand dollars, which can take you quite a ways at Gateway," Weisselberg said. "It's wonderful."

The rally makes back-to-school a bit more exciting, at least for the parents.

"The programs are very helpful, and they support us and help us in the community," said parent Sharkia Moody.

Read more about the event at www.nhps.net