Eyes Right Here

01/28/2026

📣 Calling all Special Educators! 📣
Eyes Right Here’s 2026 Classroom Grants are officially OPEN! 🎉

We’ve improved our application process to make it even easier for teachers to apply—because your time matters. ⏱️💙

If you have a vision for your classroom—materials, projects, or ideas that help your ASD students thrive—we want to support you. 💡📚

👉 Apply today and help bring your ideas to life in 2026.

⏰ Applications close February 15th —don’t miss out!

*link in comments*

09/06/2025

✨ Tonight’s the night! ✨

Our Eyes Right Here fundraiser kicks off at 6:00 PM. We’d love to see you there! 🎉

Every dollar raised goes right back into making our local classrooms the best they can be for students with autism. 💙

Thank you to everyone who has supported us—whether by showing up, donating, or helping spread the word. Together, we’re making a real difference for our kids, our teachers, and our community.

👉 If you’re free tonight, come join us for a fun evening and a great cause!

09/05/2025

As we get ready for the super fun night tomorrow, here’s a few quick pics to help remember what it looks like when Eyes Right Here is able to say yes to classroom grant applications. Delivering the items to the classrooms is the best part of what we do!

09/04/2025

Every year, Eyes Right Here has one fundraiser to raise all the money we can use to give back to educators who request classroom grants. This year's event is in TWO DAYS!

There will be Singo Bingo for everyone to play (imagine bingo but instead of calling out numbers, we play 10 second cuts of 80’s music, the song names are your bingo spaces… download shazam!) plus over a dozen raffle items plus a 50/50 raffle.... All of the money made from this event goes straight into local classrooms.

Just a few hours on one night. We need to hit it hard on Saturday. Join us to have fun, eat tacos and maybe win a $1,500 diamond ring!

07/14/2025

📣 Federal Hold on Education Funds Under Review — What It Means for Special Ed

Right now, the federal government has frozen approximately $6 billion in K–12 education funding pending an ongoing review . This freeze primarily impacts Title I, after‑school programs, and teacher development — special education funding under IDEA remains untouched for now .

✅ However….
If Congress doesn’t authorize release of full funding in time, districts could face steep deficits, forcing hard choices on essential services.

👉 Here’s Why It Matters
• IDEA currently funds about $15.4 billion annually, covering supports for ~8.4 million students — yet that’s only ~10% of actual cost .
• Schools already often make up the gap by cutting from general programs — like arts, preschool, or extracurriculars .
• If federal dollars don’t come districts will be forced into unpleasant trade‑offs—ultimately hurting both special education and broader school communities.

⸻

📚 Learn More About What’s Happening:
Trump Administration Weighs Future of Special Education Oversight and Funding:
https://www.brookings.edu/articles/trump-administration-weighs-future-of-special-education-oversight-and-funding/

School Districts Grapple with ‘Budgetary Chaos’ in Wake of Federal Funding Freeze: https://www.k12dive.com/news/school-districts-federal-funding-freeze-afterschool-English-learners/752848/

5 Way Scools are Directly Feeling the Federal Funcing Chaos: https://www.edweek.org/policy-politics/5-ways-schools-are-directly-feeling-the-federal-funding-chaos/2025/06

⸻

🔑Bottom line:
Special education isn’t in the crosshairs…yet. But delays in funding ripple outward quickly — jeopardizing essential supports, teacher retention, and equitable resources for all students.

💙Eyes Right here 🤍

12/03/2024

🌟 It’s Giving Tuesday – We’re Grateful for YOU! 🌟

Today is all about generosity and community, and we’re so thankful for the kindness and support you’ve shown us over the years. 💙

Thanks to you, we’ve been able to raise around $20,000 since our start in 2019. Together, we’ve made an incredible difference in the lives of special educators and their students in the metro – and today, we’re inviting you to help us continue this mission.

👉 Donate Today via Venmo:

or use this link: https://venmo.com/code?user_id=3341660876439552985&created=1733081026.988369&printed=1
(Please include “Giving Tuesday” in the notes!)

🎁 Every Gift Makes an Impact:

$10 helps with the purchase of visual communication cards to support non-verbal students.
$25 funds sensory tools like stress balls, fidget spinners, or noise-canceling headphones to help students stay focused and calm.
$50 supports a classroom with specialized seating options, sensory mats, or other adaptive equipment to create an inclusive learning environment.
Your generosity fuels our work and reminds us of the amazing community we’re part of. We couldn’t do this without you, and we’re so grateful to have you by our side.

Thank you for being the heart of everything we do. Let’s make this Giving Tuesday unforgettable!

❤️ With gratitude, Eyes Right Here

09/21/2024

⭐️Introducing our Board: Brooke Hilst ⭐️
We are thrilled to announce that Brooke has joined our board of directors at Eyes Right Here. With her extensive background in non-profit work as the Executive Director of The Arthritis Foundation in Kansas City, Brooke brings a wealth of knowledge and passion to our mission.

Brooke has spent many years working in the non-profit industry, where she has organized an array of incredibly sucessful events. Her most recent event, Art for Arthritis, raised $260k and was an incredible tribute to her dedication to helping our community. Her commitment to improving the lives of those around her aligns perfectly with our values, and we are so excited to welcome her to our team as we strive to make an even greater impact in our community.

Please join us in welcoming Brooke Hilst to the Eyes Right Here family!

09/08/2024

🎉 Exciting News! 🎉
Eyes Right Here is on Instagram! Follow us to stay up to date on all things ERH! Whether you are a long time supporter or new to our mission, we cannot wait to connect with you on both platforms. 💙💛

🔥Please note that this is different than our previous Instagram account that we have unfortunately lost access to, so make sure to check out the new username!

Follow us at: https://www.instagram.com/eyes_right_here__/

Thank you for your continued support!❤️

1 Followers, 0 Following, 1 Posts - See Instagram photos and videos from Eyes Right Here ()

09/06/2024

🌟Introducing our new Social Media Manger: Diana Jackson🌟

We’re super excited to introduce Diana Jackson as the newest member of the Eyes Right Here team! 🎉 Diana is taking over our social media, and we can’t wait for you to see the content she will be bringing to your feeds.

She is currently a Senior at Blue Springs South High School and has been involved in the Speech and Debate team, Mock Trial, National Honors Society, and the new Student Help Center. Aside from in school activities she has also been apart of a fundraising campaign for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. In previous years she has assisted in delivering grants to teachers in the metro, but is incredibly excited to be fulfilling a more hands-on roll in this organization!

Diana is all about creating engaging posts, telling inspiring stories, and helping us connect with all of you in new and fun ways. So get ready for more updates, behind-the-scenes moments, and more ways to support our mission to increase quality of special education!

Stay tuned for more posts introducing the rest of our board, and be on the lookout for upcoming news and event details from Eyes Right Here!

09/01/2024

🌟 Meet Our Founder: Brianne Henderson 🌟

We’re excited to reintroduce the driving force behind Eyes Right Here, Brianne ! With a passion for supporting special education students, Brianne started Eyes Right Here 5 years ago with a vision to equalize education resources for special education students and teachers.

Since then has grown this organization from a small initiative to a thriving community donating over $3,500 in grants to teachers in the metro.

Join us in celebrating Brianne Henderson in this incredible journey of Eyes Right Here. Together, we can continue to support special education in the metro.

07/01/2024

Our teachers deserve a fulfilling summer break! I'm reflecting on the recent classroom grants and am grateful for the dedication of these educators at Paul Kinder Middle School and Sunny Pointe Elementary in Blue Springs, MO to their autistic students.

04/23/2024

We raised over $4200 at SINGO BINGO!

Thanks to all of our supporters for making this happen! 💙💛💙💛