The annual distribution of school supplies and a meet-and-greet with community leaders and educators known as the Nashua Goes Back to School event drew an estimated 1,200 people to the Nashua Public Library Plaza on Thursday.
“This is where I learned to read — here, and at Birch Hill Elementary School,” U.S. Rep. Maggie Goodlander, D-N.H., said in brief remarks as she gestured toward the library. Speaking mainly to parents with kids in tow, she added, “I want you to reach out to us.”
The number of agencies and organizations participating in the popular event reached 40 this year, having grown in increments since its founding 22 years ago, according to key organizer and former city alderwoman Mary Ann Melizzi Golja.
Each of the city’s 12 public elementary schools, three middle schools and two high schools were represented, along with the Nashua Teachers Association, the United Way of Greater Nashua, the Nashua Lions Club, Community Music School and plenty more.
Principals of the schools and school district leaders were present to greet new and returning students who populated the plaza under ideal weather conditions.
A wide variety of school supplies, from backpacks and books to notebooks and writing implements, were distributed over the course of the 90-minute event.
Among the donors was Dr. Syed Jamal, one of several representatives of Inca Relief, a Nashua nonprofit organization. “We have given out about 300 backpacks so far,” Jamal said. “I think we’ll give out 400 today.”
In addition to collecting supplies, incoming students received information on what’s new this school year, such as class schedules and other minor tweaks that they probably already know about.
This year, however, students, teachers and administrators alike will be adjusting to a major change: the implementation of a new district-wide cellphone policy.
Classified by the Board of Education as “Policy JICJ – Student Use of Personal Electronic Communication Devices,” the new policy essentially bans students from using their devices from the time they arrive at school until they leave for the day. The full text of the policy can be found at www.nashua.edu.
