Nearly 3,700 listening devices were distributed to San Diego County students as a result of funds raised by the Stuff the Bus school supplies campaign, the San Diego County Credit Union announced Wednesday.
The credit union, San Diego County Office of Education and iHeartMedia's San Diego radio stations teamed to raise $130,900, which was used to fill 7,724 backpacks with school supplies and provide more than 2,000 planners and 24,000 face masks to better prepare students for success as they headed back to school this year.
Leftover funds were used to purchase more than 1,600 headphone sets and more than 2,000 earbuds to help ease distance learning.
Several districts requested the devices to assist students experiencing homelessness in accessing their classes. Many of the students find themselves in noisy or crowded home environments and need assistance to concentrate in a distance learning environment.
"We are grateful for the extreme generosity of our community," said SDCCU President and CEO Teresa Campbell. "Not only did these donations make it possible for the SDCOE to fulfill all requests received, but the additional funds were able to provide valuable devices to help eliminate one more barrier to learning."
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Due to COVID-19, Stuff the Bus was held online this year with monetary donations accepted through Aug. 31.
The San Diego County Credit Union is San Diego's largest locally-owned financial institution.
