When Cleveland Rocked the NERC Fall Conference

Put staff from 28 organizations that support teachers and students in the same room, and it doesn’t take long for the conversation to get started. 

How do you manage teacher shopping? What’s working in your warehouse? How do you explain your impact beyond the number of supplies you distribute? And, inevitably: Can you send me a copy of that? 

From October 20–22, 2026, Shoes and Clothes for Kids hosted the National Educational Resource Collective Fall Conference, bringing nonprofit leaders and staff from as far away as Portland, Oregon, and as close as Dayton, Ohio, to Cleveland for three days of learning, sharing, and seeing our work up close. 

Sessions covered communications, fundraising, leadership, operations, and programs. We talked about making data meaningful, telling stronger stories, and building organizations that can keep meeting the needs of their communities. 

For our team, it was a chance to open our doors to people who understand both why we do this work and what it takes to make it happen. 

 We’ve picked up a few good ideas, and we’re happy to give credit. 

Throughout the tour of the SC4K Free Store, signs read, “We Saw It. We Made It Our Own!” Each recognized an organization whose idea had helped shape something in our space or programs. 

Those signs captured one of the best things about the Collective: We share what works. An idea from a resource center in Charlotte can help us provide a better experience for a teacher in Cleveland. Something we’ve figured out at SC4K might help another organization solve a problem they’ve been wrestling with for months. 

One conversation brought us directly back to SC4K’s mission: school attendance. 

Day two kicked off with a panel on tackling chronic absenteeism that brought together perspectives from education, philanthropy, and attendance advocacy to explore the barriers that keep students out of school and the partnerships needed to address them. 

New shoes, clothes, and school supplies are part of that response. Understanding how our work connects to the larger attendance picture helps us ask better questions, strengthen partnerships, and think more carefully about the difference we’re making. 

Apparently, teachers can unite rival football fans.  

We also made time to enjoy Cleveland. Our welcome reception brought attendees onto the turf at Huntington Bank Field, home of the Cleveland Browns, where fans of several rival teams managed to put their differences aside long enough to shout, “Teachers Rock!” We’ll take that as a win. 

The reception, meals, and conversations between sessions gave people time to reconnect with longtime colleagues and get to know new ones. 

Hosting was a team effort.  

Staff and volunteers handled room setups, tours, technology, materials, directions, and countless details that helped make the conference work. Our planning committee, speakers, and sponsors contributed their time, expertise, and support. Attendees showed up ready to talk honestly about work that can be rewarding, complicated, and occasionally exhausting. 

We spend much of our time making sure teachers and students have the resources they need. For three days, we got to be resources for one another. From shared ideas to rival fans cheering for teachers, we’ve got the pictures to prove it. View our conference photo album 

Next year, Teachers’ Treasures will host the conference in Indianapolis. I’ve visited their center several times and met their staff, so I know we’ll be in good hands. 

Thank you to everyone who helped bring the Collective to Cleveland.

Presenting Sponsors

Principal Sponsor