Twelve years ago, after Hurricane Katrina, Houston modeled what it means to be a citizen, a neighbor and a friend to those displaced and in need. Now it’s time to help Houston. With countless lives disrupted—among them, more than 160 districts across the state closed—many families and educators must rebuild before they can return to school.
National relief efforts from the likes of The Red Cross and United Way are marshalling donations. Below are efforts focused on supporting the education community and families impacted by Harvey:
DonorsChoose.org has set up a Hurricane Harvey Recovery Fund to support classroom projects at schools impacted by the deluge.
Harmony Public Schools, which serves more than 12,000 students in the Houston area, has set up a GoFundMe page to support its families.
Houston Independent School District, the 7th largest in the U.S. with 215,000 students, is accepting donations to help families recover. (At least 35 of its 300 buildings have been damaged, reports The Washington Post.)
KIPP Houston has set up a “Family Emergency Fund” option on its donor page. Select “Family Emergency Fund” from the drop-down menu to donate. (Or, donate specifically to the KIPP Liberation College Prep campus, where EdSurge’s Mary Jo Madda used to teach.)
YES Prep Public Schools has established a "YES Prep Family Flood Relief Fund." 100 percent of donations will go directly to families in need.
PledgeCents’ co-founder and CEO, born and raised in Houston, has set up a Hurricane Harvey Relief & Support campaign dedicated to helping students and families, working with KIPP Houston Public Schools, YES Prep Public Schools, Spring Branch Independent School District and others.
Principals Helping Principals is a Google spreadsheet where Houston-area administrators are sharing contact information and supplies needs.
Here are other efforts to support the greater Houston community impacted by the storm:
The Coalition for the Homeless, which helps provides shelters for some of the region’s most vulnerable people, has information about donation efforts here.
To help displaced pets find shelter and get supplies, consider BARC and SPCA.
Donate to the Galveston Food Bank, the Houston Food Bank, orThe Food Bank of Corpus Christi.
GoFundMe has set up a page dedicated to Harvey-related campaigns.
The Montrose Center, Houston’s counseling center for the LGBTQ community, is accepting donations for its relief fund here.
Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner has set up a Hurricane Harvey Relief Fund.
The Texas Diaper Bank is accepting donations to support babies, children with disabilities, and seniors.
The Rockport-Fulton Chamber of Commerce has set up a GoFundMe page to help rebuild Rockport. Rockport, a city which sits on the coast of Texas, has been especially devastated by Hurricane Harvey.
Finally, the city of New Orleans never forgets. #FleurtyGirl is donating all proceeds from a tee-shirt to support Feeding Texas, which works with food banks in the Houston area. Another Big Easy-based apparel company, Dirty Coast will be giving funds to the Houston Food Bank.
While Houston has taken the brunt of the storm, Hurricane Harvey is still on the move and is expected to impact neighboring regions, including parts of Louisiana. This post will be updated with additional links as that happens.
