School supply shopping is a marker of summer winding down and a new year of learning about to begin. For many kids, it is also a chance to express themselves through the stuff they pick out.

But many families are concerned about the price of that fresh start. Several years of inflation has pinched budgets, and there is concern that tariffs will drive up prices further. A survey by the National Retail Federation found more families started their shopping early this year because of that worry.

For the latest in the Minnesota Now series Professional Help, Minnesota Now producer Alanna Elder talked with Julie Granning, PTO president for Valley View Elementary School in Columbia Heights, as well as Sarah Lancaster, who teaches first grade in Onamia and was named Minnesota Teacher of the Year in 2022.

Lancaster noted there are school supply giveaways across the state, including one happening Tuesday at Onamia Public Schools. The blog “Thrifty Minnesota” rounded up a list of other events in the state. And the Little Canada-based organization Kids in Need Foundation also provides supplies to eligible students and teachers.

Our ask: Help me shop for school supplies on a budget

Our guests: Julie Granning, PTO president for Valley View Elementary School, and Sarah Lancaster, a first grade teacher in Onamia and 2022 Minnesota Teacher of the Year.