The High Cost of School Supplies for Louisiana School Kids

This is the time of year when parents are likely hoping that more money will magically appear in their bank accounts so they can afford to buy all the school supplies they need for their children to get back to school.

When you take a look at Lafayette Parish School System's list of requirements for kindergarten students, that list alone has 24 items. It's not easy for any parent, no matter the grade, to afford the requirements for a new school year.

Whether it's the fees, school supplies, or school uniforms, the cost of "going back to school" seems excessive, but that's just life. The items needed are exactly that; they are items needed to help educate a child and clean up after them.

The following is the list of school supplies for a kindergarten school student in the Lafayette Parish School System for 2024:

KINDERGARTEN 2024-2025 SUPPLY LIST

Assessment Fee .....................$25.00 ID - $4.00 Electronic Device Insurance .............. $10.00
Fees can be paid online using School Cash online site, Cash, or Check beginning September 1, 2024.
1 Watercolor Paint Set
1 Washable Markers – 8ct Primary Colors
2 Boxes of Crayons 24-ct. Regular Colors
1 Bottle of Glue – 8 oz.
6 Glue Sticks
1 Coloring Book 8-1/2 X 11 (Easy Pictures-Inside Recess)
1 Marble Composition Books (Primary Ruled)
1 Book Sack (Large Enough to Hold a Folder-clear or solid mesh)
2 Boxes of Kleenex
2 Rolls of Paper Towels
2 Package of Wet Wipes
2 Plastic Pocket Folders (1 Without Brads and 1 With Brads)
1 Box of Zipper Seal Bags - Quart Size
2 Pink Erasers
1 4 pack of Play Doh Regular Size (No Minis)
1 Pack of Dry Erase Markers (Black)- Student Use Only
1 Pack of Pencils
1 1/2” White Binder
1 Pack of construction paper
1 Pack of white card stock
25 Sheet Protectors
1 Pack of dividers
1 Round Tip 3” Scissors
1 Pencil Box or Pouch
1 Headphones (No Earbuds)
2 Plastic Pocket Folders with Brads (one blue, one red) (French Immersion Only)

***SOME SUPPLIES MAY NEED TO BE REPLENISHED DURING THE SCHOOL YEAR***
LABEL ALL SUPPLIES

CHANGE OF CLOTHES INCLUDING UNDERWEAR AND SOCKS IN LARGE ZIP LOCK BAG

School Uniforms:
Shirts – Navy, Red, or White Polo
Bottoms – Navy or Khaki
No Sandals or Flip Flops

How Much Is This Going to Cost?

We went to the website of a local store and put all of the school supplies on the list into the basket to find out how much it would cost. We then added in the cost of two school uniform sets. Here is the breakdown:

$73.44 is the amount of money that you would have to spend per child for a kindergarten class. Add in the Assessment Fee, ID Fee, and Electronic Device Insurance Fee and the total is now $112.44, and this is before you purchase school uniforms and the change of clothes with the large Ziplock Bag.

Two uniform shirts at $10 each, and the additional for the Ziplock bag, is $30 for the cheapest shirts possible.

Two uniform pants are $20 each, and the additional for the Ziplock bag is $60 for the cheapest pants possible.

The large Ziploc bag only comes in a pack of 5 and that will cost, on sale, $20.

So the full total for everything, accounting for shopping sales, and only buying two uniforms, the total comes to $222.44. Ouch!!!! 

Now that we have determined the least you can get school supplies and uniforms purchased for if your child is in kindergarten, let's check middle school and sixth grade. The following is a sample list for one of the schools:

2024-2025 Supply List Grade 6 (Randomly picked a school)

Science  1 - composition notebook (NO spiral bound), 1 - roll of paper towels, Class Fee $5.00

Math  1  3-subject notebook, 2  3-prong folders with pockets, 1 - pack of wide-ruled looseleaf*  1 - 4-pack dry erase markers (chisel tip) for student use  2 - boxes of pencils Class Fee $5.00

Social Studies  1 - 3-prong folder with pockets  Project supplies will be announced as needed  1 - Composition Notebook (NO spiral bound)  10 - Sheet Protectors Class Fee $5.00

ELA  1 - composition notebook (NO spiral bound)  1 - 3 prong folder with pockets  1 - pack sticky notes for student use  1 - pack of highlighters (multi-color)  1 - pack of looseleaf paper Class Fee $5.00

PE  1 subject notebook  1 - 3 prong pocket folder  1 - box snack size Ziploc bags  Deodorant for personal use (roll on – NO AEROSOL)

Homeroom  2 large boxes of tissue, 1 bottle of hand sanitizer (girls)  1 roll of paper towels (All students)  1 container of baby wipes (boys) *Replenish these supplies as needed

Student must carry at all times 1 pair of headphones or earbuds (wired) for daily personal use, 12 pencils – sharpened*, 1 hand-held pencil sharpener, 1 backpack – clear or solid color mesh

The total for all of the supplies above is $45.25.

Here are the other fees for middle school in Lafayette Parish:

Core Content Area Class Fees: $20.00

ID Fee: $9.00 - This fee will cover school ID, pouch, and lanyard.

Device Insurance Fee: $15.00 – This fee will be used to maintain technology devices utilized by students.

The total of supplies, plus fees, so far is $89.25. Plus if you need to purchase the bare minimum of school uniforms, two pairs of pants, and two shirts, the total would increase to a total of $159.25.

And, don't forget about Elective Fees (only the one enrolled in): Art - $10, Band - $40, Chorus - $25, Basic Wood Shop - $25, French - $5, General Technology Education - $15, JAG - $10 o Other Fees: PBIS - $3 and Accelerated Reader - $3 This list does NOT include any supplies associated with elective classes. This information will be given out during the first week of school.

If you have one kindergarten/elementary student and one middle school student, the minimum you are going to have to pay for between school supplies and school uniforms is $381.69!!!

We didn't calculate adding in the cost of socks and shoes which every student must have as well. It's beyond costly to help our children have everything they need for school.