Our schools have recently combined: two high schools becoming one giant school. The budget is tight and basic supplies are in demand. We need composition notebooks, paper, pencils, reference books, bulletin boards, and more. When the very basics are in short supply, moral plummets. Students start to wonder why they are bothering to do this and why no one cares about them. Their effort decreases and progress grinds to a halt. When someone shows that they care, that they understand, the students genuinely light up! Their effort increases, their scores improve, and the world opens up.