Leveraging EITC Advocacy During Back-to-School Season: Strategies for Maximum Impact
Lauren Bush
As families gear up to spend an average of $586 per child on school-related items this fall, many parents are feeling the financial strain of back-to-school season. Low-income families, in particular, are expected to cut back on spending as prices rise and resources shrink, which could affect their children’s preparedness for the new school year. Whether they’re budgeting for school supplies or extracurricular activities, low-income families need the financial resources to best support their children and ensure their students can thrive at school and beyond the classroom.
The financial pressure often accompanying back-to-school season presents a unique opportunity for Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) advocates to raise awareness among families of how claiming the credit can help ease some financial burdens and ensure that students not only have the material goods to succeed, but access to the critical extracurricular activities that meaningfully add to every child’s educational experience. Some 86% of parents enroll their children in extracurricular activities, spending an average of $582 per child, making a clear recognition of the importance of these activities in a child’s development. The EITC can help ensure that all children, regardless of their family’s income, have access to these enriching experiences.
Crafting Effective Advocacy Messages
One challenge in EITC advocacy is addressing misconceptions about the credit. For instance, some people confuse the EITC with education-specific tax credits like the American Opportunity Tax Credit (AOTC). While the AOTC is designed to offset education expenses, the EITC provides broader income support that can be used for various family needs, including educational expenses.
To make the most of this advocacy opportunity, it’s essential to craft and amplify messaging that showcases the benefits of the credit, debunks myths around it, and reaches and resonates with families and policymakers alike. To do this, advocates should:
- Highlight the Connection Between the EITC and Educational Success: The EITC is not just a financial aid; it’s an investment in children’s futures. Research shows that children in EITC-eligible families are more likely to perform well academically and graduate from high school. This is because the EITC helps reduce financial stress, allowing parents to focus more on their children’s education. By emphasizing this connection, advocates can show that the EITC is a powerful tool for breaking the cycle of poverty through education, potentially improving long-term outcomes for generations of families.
- Emphasize the EITC’s Broader Economic Impact: The benefits of the EITC extend beyond individual families. For every dollar received through the EITC, there’s a multiplier effect that boosts local economies. This is particularly important during the back-to-school season when families are spending on school supplies, clothing, and more. This broader economic impact means that the EITC not only helps individual families but also strengthens entire communities, creating a more robust economic environment that can benefit all families in the long run.
- Use Real-Life Stories: Sharing stories of families who have benefited from the EITC can make your advocacy efforts more relatable. These stories can illustrate how the EITC has helped parents provide for their children’s education, improved their quality of life, and set them on a path toward long-term success. By sharing these personal narratives, we can help policymakers and the public understand the real-world impact of the EITC, potentially leading to greater support for the credit and policies that could extend its benefits to more families in need.
The Case for Expanding the EITC
Beyond enhancing the messaging around the EITC in the immediate future, it’s also important to consider how the EITC will evolve, and what that will mean for engaging families in future back-to-school seasons. There’s a strong case to be made for expanding the EITC, particularly for families with school-aged children. Research suggests that increasing the EITC could lead to even better educational outcomes. For example, an additional $1,000 in EITC exposure during a child’s teenage years is associated with a 1.3% increase in high school completion rates and a 4.2% increase in college completion rates.
Moreover, states that have implemented more generous EITC programs have seen significant long-term benefits. These include higher rates of educational attainment, better health outcomes, and greater economic mobility for children in low-income families.
Capitalizing on Back-to-School Momentum
Ultimately, highlighting how the EITC supports family financial stability and contributes to children’s educational success enables us to broaden support for this vital credit. Advocates can gain traction among a diverse coalition of supporters, including policymakers seeking effective measures to combat economic inequality, educators witnessing the impact of financial stability on student performance, community leaders invested in local economic growth, and members of the public.
This expanded support base can drive policy changes at local, state, and federal levels, potentially leading to EITC expansions that reach more families, increase credit amounts, or simplify the claiming process. With strategic messaging and targeted outreach, we can transform the EITC from a tax policy into a widely recognized cornerstone of educational empowerment and economic mobility. By ensuring more families benefit from the EITC, we’re not just easing back-to-school financial burdens – we’re investing in a generation of students equipped to overcome economic barriers and build a more prosperous future for themselves and their communities.