News

We are dedicated to providing students with the tools they need to help them learn and grow. While the kids are home from school for winter break, there are many ways they can enjoy their time off and continue learning. From books, educational games and family activities, here are a few ways you and your kids can spend the holidays learning and having fun.

• Reading has many benefits and can be done anywhere. If you are on a roadtrip to visit family or need something for your kids to do while you’re prepping for the holidays, make sure to pack a book or two or download new books on your tablet. If your little ones get car sick, audiobooks are a great alternative! Remember to utilize your local Public Library for a wider range of books from which to choose. You can also get into the holiday spirit with holiday-themed books and once finished, treat your kids to the movie adaption of the book.

• While you are baking those delicious holiday meals, kids can practice math skills in the kitchen by calculating measurements used in recipes. Showing them how to properly read and measure different ingredients is a fun, hands-on way to practice fractions, addition and subtraction. For your little ones, try counting the number of cookies left out for Santa or the number of sides a gingerbread house has.

• Work on writing and penmanship skills by asking your kids to help write out thank-you notes to family and friends for the holidays. This is a great opportunity to work on spelling and grammar, while showing loved ones your gratitude.

We hope you and your family have a wonderful holiday season and a happy new year!

November is the month of giving thanks and giving back. As an organization that is dedicated to giving back to Title 1 Elementary students, we are always thrilled to take part in movements that help shine a light on nonprofits.  #GivingTuesday is a growing social campaign that takes place every year on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving. While the Thanksgiving holiday is also known for shopping and getting deals on Black Friday and Cyber Monday — #GivingTuesday shortly after is the day for giving back. This day was created to raise awareness and funds for nonprofits that make a difference in their communities. As we enter the holiday season, we encourage you to get into the spirit of giving by donating to your favorite nonprofit.

If you would like to participate in #GivingTuesday, Austin YES is a proud participating organization. Your donation to Austin YES helps provide students with school supply kits containing the basic supplies they need to succeed during the academic school year. Also, with your donation, you will receive quarterly updates about our programs, the opportunity to participate in our hands-on distribution of school supplies and recognition of your support.

Every act of generosity counts and each means even more when we give together. To participate in #GivingTuesday and give back to students in your city, you can donate directly to Austin YES here.

To supplement our efforts to provide free school supplies for Title 1 Elementary schools in Austin, Austin YES is proud to announce this year’s Drive Away for Education Raffle raised a total of $32,101.19.

Each raffle ticket sold helped five local children start the school year off right with a school supply kit filled with colored pencils, crayons, an eraser, ruler, glue stick, notebook paper, pencils, pens, folders and a tissue box. Through the support and generosity of Thomas J. Henry, lucky winner Harlan Smith drove away in a 2018 Mercedes-Benz C300.

The raffle proceeds will directly support the Austin YES Back to Basics Project for the 2018-2019 school year.

We would like to thank all who participated in this year’s Drive Away for Education Raffle and look forward to continuing our work and mission.

Our first ever Back to Basics Project in Austin has come to an end for the year! After distributing school supplies to 7,500 students in Del Valle ISD, we are proud to call our expansion into Austin a success.

This project came to fruition after we saw the difference made through our partners in San Antonio and Corpus Christi. Our friends in Austin shared the city’s growing need for school supplies as a result of the increased cost of living.

We created Austin YES to fill in the gaps around Austin and support local Title 1 Elementary students and community groups through educational outreach of free school supplies.  We worked with nine Del Valle ISD schools to personally deliver supply kits filled with colored pencils, crayons, an eraser, a ruler, notebook paper, a glue stick, pencils, pens, folders and a tissue box. We loved meeting the students and seeing the smiles and excitement on their faces when they received the kits.  All students Kinder through 5th grade received a box of supplies.

Thank you again to our sponsor, Thomas J. Henry, and everyone involved who helped Austin YES reach our goal this first year. We look forward to continue making a difference in Austin for years to come.]

Congratulations to Harlan Smith for being our 2018 Drive Away for Education Raffle winner!

Harlan received a 2018 Mercedes-Benz C300 thanks to Thomas J. Henry.  We would like to thank our other sponsors, Telemundo Austin, CBS Austin and the Austin American-Statesman.

Our annual Drive Away for Education Raffle took place throughout the summer with the purpose of supporting elementary students. Proceeds from the raffle went towards providing students with free school supply kits to help them start the school year off right.

We are thrilled the raffle was such a success, and that our winner, Harlan, is enjoying his new vehicle that he has gifted to his wife, who is a teacher.

Summer days have come to an end, but Austin YES is starting a new adventure with the Austin community. In partnership with Thomas J. Henry, Austin YES will support 7,500 students in Del Valle ISD through the Back to Basics Program.

Kindergarten through fifth-grade students will receive free school supply kits filled with colored pencils, crayons, an eraser, a ruler, notebook paper, a glue stick, pencils, pens, folders, and a tissue box. Austin YES will support 9 DVISD Title 1 Elementary schools in September.

We look forward to our first year of supporting the student of Del Valle ISD and best of luck on a new year!

Hello, Austin!

We are Austin Youth Educational Support Project (Austin YES), a partner of SA YES, the largest distributor of school supplies in South Texas. Ahead of the 2018 – 2019 school year, we are proud to announce that we’ll be arriving in the Austin area soon.

Austin YES is a nonprofit organization which will support local Title 1 Elementary students and community groups through educational outreach of free school supplies and classroom grants.

To kick-off the school year our goal is to provide 7,500 school supply kits to students, giving them the confidence and motivation they need to start the year off right.

All kits will include filler paper, a spiral notebook, folders, an eraser, a glue stick, crayons, mini-color pencils, pens, pencils and a tissue box. By providing each student with their own school supply kit, we hope the act serves as a reminder that each student is important to the community and the importance of being prepared to learn and grow.

We look forward to our inaugural year in Austin and stay tuned for more information on our website. Have a great summer and see you in the Fall!