Back-to-school fair brings families information and supplies

Kyle B. Hansen

Students and their parents make their way around information tables at a back-to-school fair at the Meadows Mall on Saturday.

By Kyle B. Hansen (contact)

Saturday, Aug. 14, 2010 | 3:16 p.m.

The back-to-school season is already under way, and parents are taking advantage of special fairs and events to get their children ready.

Saturday was the first of three back-to-school fairs sponsored by Cox Communications at area malls.

About 200 people were in line before 10 a.m. waiting for the event to begin at the Meadows Mall in Las Vegas. Similar events will be held Aug. 21 at the Boulevard mall and Aug. 28 at the Galleria at Sunset mall in Henderson.

The Clark County School District had representatives at the event to talk to families about school lunches, zoning, buses and a number of other topics. Plus Cox and other sponsors were giving away school supplies and School District Police officers were handing out stickers to happy kids.

“It’s very informative, they have lots of resources,” said Alexandra Rodriguez, who brought her family to the event.

“You have it all in one place, you don’t have to find all the different departments and call them each to ask questions,” she said.

Some school officials also used the event as an opportunity to get to know the students.

“I get to meet the kids and their parents and they can ask me questions,” said George Anas, the principal of Griffith Elementary School, which is near the mall. “This is way for us to reach out to the community.”

Anas said it was exactly that type of community interaction that has helped his school get an exemplary turnaround designation on this year’s Adequate Yearly Progress report.

In addition to the information and goodies being handed out, the Southern Nevada Health District was at the mall providing low-cost immunizations, which are required to go to school.

“We’re trying to help families have some options so working parents can bring their children on their day off,” said JoAnn Rupiper, a senior public health nurse with the district. “We try to make it as convenient as possible.”

Plus, the mall is a more kid-friendly place than a doctor’s office or a clinic.

“It isn’t as scary to come to the mall and get your shots,” said Sherry Dickerson, who brought her five-year-old son Caden Ritchey to get four immunizations.

Caden is excited to start kindergarten at Givens Elementary School, but he was a little nervous about the shots.

“How much does it hurt?” he asked the nurse as she was preparing the immunizations.

“A little bit,” she said.

“I saw some big kids cry,” he said.

The nurse reassured him, and when the time came, Caden winced, but didn’t cry.