About Us

Uplifting students in need by providing essentials to encourage academic success.

Our Mission

We are designed to be a student-led organization, where students gain experiences to build both their leadership skills and their philanthropic passions through helping to support and uplift the homeless and housing-insecure students on their own campuses and other campuses in their school districts. Through this model we can extend support beyond our own backyard, and help to uplift students facing crises throughout the entire state of California.

“California is in the midst of a crisis of homelessness, with more than 1 in 5 of the nation’s population of students identified as experiencing homelessness residing in the state.”

— Learning Policy Institute - June 14, 2021

Our Kidz is designed around five pillars of focus: food, shelter, mental health, daily necessities, and well-being. Extensive investment exists, from the federal, state and local levels for those students in need, particularly in the areas of food, shelter, and mental health. Rather than recreating yet another program, Our Kidz is very strategic and laser focused on awareness and engagement.

Our Kidz strives to make a meaningful impact, one student at a time in the areas of daily necessities and well-being.

Provide support to the parents to qualify for various federal and state programs, including CalFresh

Provide support to the school faculty to help maximize the aid available from a variety of federal, state and local sources.
Share best practices across local organizations who support the McKinney-Vento kids in the state of California - OurKidz.

Provide essentials to make the day a little easier, including hygiene kits, backpacks, cold weather/rain gear, etc.
Provide laundry assistance.
Provide assistance for school activities: dances, athletics, art & engineering, etc.
Provide life skills support including budgeting skills
Provide job seeking support
Provide college prep support

Our Kidz is being built through the creation of pilot programs supporting our five strategic pillars. Each of the programs are created and tested in a small group of high schools, and then once proven meaningful and executable, scaled state-wide.